Senior public relations student Blair Stokes was in the throes of an all-nighter, finishing an annotated bibliography for class, when she heard the first murmurings of a shooter in Strozier Library. In an age of constant news and updates, Blair checked Twitter to confirm the chilling news. When she didn’t see any information, Blair fell into a comfortable and familiar role: reporter.
Blair had served as editor of her high school newspaper and, later, as a News Editor for FSView & Florida Flambeau – but this kind of reporting was different. This time, her outlet was Twitter. “I felt it was my responsibility to keep people informed,” she shared. When sirens confirmed her fears – Blair kept tweeting. “For awhile, it was just me and a few other students tweeting the news out,” she said. Other than a vague FSU Alert about a dangerous situation, there was no information surrounding the situation. This is when Blair’s Twitter feed became a primary source for information about the shooting. Strangers tweeted at her, thanking her for updates and sending well wishes for safety.
“I received an outpouring of love from the FSU community and beyond,” said Blair.
Her tweets received hundreds of retweets and favorites and chronicled her journey from the 4th floor of Strozier Library, to Bellamy, to press conferences and home again. That day, her feed covered raw musings, news updates, photos of abandoned Macbooks and Starbucks cups. All together, Blair sent out over 100 tweets.
Her followers tripled within the span of a night, reaching over 1,500 followers by the following afternoon.
“The notifications on my phone were incessant for several days after,” she said.
Twitter wasn’t the only news site that showed interest in Blair’s content; she was interviewed by CNN, NBC and the Los Angeles Times. Her parents were interviewed by a local TV station in her hometown. She wrote an op-ed for the Tallahassee Democrat about her experience in the library.
Blair returned to Strozier Library shortly after the Nov. 20 events. Shaken, but not broken, she still considers “Club Stroz” a sanctuary for students.
In a time of terror, Blair found comfort in journalism.
“My background in media helped me handle the situation and I was glad I could at least provide some clarity in the midst of such a heinous tragedy.”