The entire country was jolted out of their beds this morning when the news of former Secretary and General Angelo Reyes’ suicide broke on traditional and social media. Since there were no news programs available to answer all the questions, a lot of Filipinos turned to the internet to find out what happened. News websites like Inquirer, ABS-CBN, GMA News, and News Break were inundated and some of these sites just couldn’t take the traffic. The volume of discussion was also pretty heavy since it hit the top trending topics on Twitter (global).
News Website Error
Here’s the tweet of News Break saying that they were finally going back online after going down due to the traffic surge:
Social media spread the initial information and since users were already on the web it was easier for them to go to a website and check what happened versus turning on the radio or waiting for the afternoon news. Not everyone has cable so they have no access to the cable news-only channels. Technology has radically changed how we get our information turning us from passive listeners to active and news-hungry individuals.
On a more personal note… I met former Sec. Angelo Reyes several times. He was a very lively, passionate, and happy person so I am really surprised and saddened with what happened. Condolences to all the loved ones and family members that he left behind. 
And it’s scary how twitter users can come up with accounts that pretend to be angelo reyes’. *Sigh*