From parody to charity: How @lizjonessomalia’s 172 tweets raised £25000 in 2 weeks

In the last few weeks social media has taken a battering but at the same time a great case study for how social media can be a force for good was born.  @LizJonesSomalia the Twitter account parodying Daily Mail reporter Liz Jones’s trip to Somalia has raised almost £25000 with nothing more than comedy and timing.

Liz Jones, better known for her insightful writing on such varied topics as 'If you're too bolshy to put on some lippy, why should any firm give you a job?' and the unforgettable 'If face creams really beat ageing, I wouldn't have had a facelift' was sent to report on the devastating famine in Somalia, from a refugee camp in Kenya. Understandably, almost every free thinking person thought this somewhat crass, but only one person channelled their energy for good.

Through the @lizjonessomalia Twitter account, over the duration of her visit, the wit of the Daily Mail’s own parodier @DMreporter kept 8500 followers amused with some of the darkest satire I have seen. The tweets are so cutting they are should read them from start to finish, but here are my top five:

• I'm speaking English slower. I'm speaking English louder. Still these people don't understand me.
• I saw a man with a solid gold machine gun today. I wanted to take a picture using my Hipstamatic app but Aasiya told me to leave him alone.
• People in Somalia take Ramadan very seriously. Let's hope it ends soon, I can't bear to see people not eating.
• Very hard to get quotes on the record. Most people too weak to talk, or too distressed to be comprehended. Frustrating.
• The refugees are lovely too. One little girl said how sorry she was to hear of the difficulties I was having selling my house. At least I think that's what she said. There was a lot of coughing.

Obviously famine is not funny and the spoof writer commented “I’ve tried to be really careful about never making famine, drought or death the target of the joke. This account is not about that. It’s about highlighting the crisis in East Africa and opposing the staggering crassness of sending a crossbreed of Glenn Beck and Anthea Turner to Somalia to cover it”.

The audience was engaged by comedy but also propelled to do something more by the references to a JustGiving page resulting in almost £25000 raised in just 2 weeks.

I think the quote from @DMReporter sums it up best "Isn't there something perversely brilliant about Liz Jones being sent to Somalia inspiring a charity drive in opposition to her? If that doesn't send her a message about her value as a journalist then nothing will".

The bottom line:

• Two weeks
• 172 tweets
• Grew an audience of almost 8500
• Almost £25000 raised for the DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal

The learnings:

• Timing is everything – this worked because the timing was right
• Content and message – great writing is critical, but so is balancing the serious message so people willingly share it

I was really heartened to see social media used in this way, what do you think? Please comment below.

Why not donate? http://www.justgiving.com/dmreporter/

PS

For those with a strong stomach (the writing as much as the subject) then you can read Liz Jones’s final article.

Comments

[@RachaelPhillips]

Do you know I LOVE the way that social media is used for good like this. I made a similar comment on my own blog > http://wp.me/px6LZ-bw after reading (and donating) to the 80+ year old Barber who had his shop trashed during the riots.

It's funny how the *good* that social media can do never seems to get reported.

[AlexDRobertson]

I wonder what the response would have been had it had been a big organisation (oxfam/mercycorps/other) that had come up with this sort of campaign. I am guessing (I will have a closer look when I have more time) she started the account mainly with the idea it would be funny then with popularity started fundraising.

I think it's worth remembering that sometimes in the third sector we'd love to engage people in this way and indeed we have some of the most innovative people in the world working in this sector - however we're blocked at the first hurdle as the risk/benefit for this is so hard to judge. I am sure that if I had proposed something like this to comms they would have come back explaining that we operate so close to the line most of the time and that any bad press might reflect terribly on our DFID/government contracts and therefore we can't risk this.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that although I love the awesomeness of this and the benefit to the recipients of the money, it's worth remembering that it's not that easy for registered charities to do this sort of thing..... as much as we might like to!

Al.

[Mark Jennings]

Alex

I do agree though perhaps this is why it works so well, that someone wanted to do something and did it, removing the charity from it which meant it could run without PR issue to them but giving them the benefits.

The truth is that third sector is often too protective - not a lack of want but a lack of structure that allows the kind of fast moving needed to seize the moment.