On November 17, the WeChat account MSU伴侣 (literally “MSU Companion”) warned overseas Chinese students about the possibility of tornadoes and severe winds near Michigan State University’s campus in East Lansing. Earlier this year, the school also used WeChat to calm students’ nerves about a reported shooter on university grounds (pictured below).
While there were fortunately neither tornadoes nor gunmen, WeChat was able to facilitate timely Chinese-language emergency communications in a Midwestern American college town.
Besides urgent notifications, students who subscribe to this particular account (i.e. a brand page, just like Facebook has) can hear about cultural events, group outings, parties, and the occasional post about local car insurance rates.
For an insider’s perspective on using WeChat in this way, I talked to Chinese students and recent graduates at my alma mater, where Chinese students make up roughly 12 percent of this year’s freshman class. More...
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