Facebook's Role In London Riots Is Under Investigation
London investigators are examining Facebook's role as a means of organizing riots in the Tottenham neighborhood.
An area of London known as Tottenham has been besieged by fires, looters and riots over the weekend, amid claims that the rioters used Facebook to coordinate efforts.
We’ve reported on Facebook’s role in organizing many other flash mobs; for example, in Vancouver when the Canucks lost the NHL finals. And less serious riots, like when a German teen forgot to set her privacy settings and had a mob crash her house party.
What’s unique about the London riots is the level of violence that Tottenham is experiencing — despite a long history of racial tension — and the almost singular role that social media, from Facebook to Twitter (both accessed via BlackBerry) is playing in mobilizing rioters.
The Telegraph is reporting that BlackBerry’s parent company Research In Motion is helping police in investigating these riots, since messages sent on RIM’s messaging service cannot be traced.
According
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