Well, that tornado that hit late 3/14/08-early 3/15/08 certainly shook things up in downtown Atlanta. The CNN Center, Centennial Olympic Park and the Georgia Dome all suffered damage, now estimated to be at least $150 million.
It also showed the power of social media, as Atlanta-based sites as diverse as www.shelbinator.com , mostlymedia and CNN’s Ireport had plenty of good ground-level coverage.
WSB TV played its role well, as it brought in veteran anchor John Pruitt to lend a calm perspective to the whole thing Saturday, as storms still battered the area. And CNN offered good traditional coverage as well. Hey, their newsroom got soaked. And even the Los Angeles Times took notice.
Some good fortune: Georgia’s men’s basketball team definitely benefited. When the SEC Tournament was moved to Georgia Tech from the Dome, the Dawgs responded by winning it all, including an incredible OT upset of Kentucky. The March Madness berth likely would not have happened under normal circumstances, as any fan advantage was erased when non-family spectators were barred from the games.
Still, Georgia won three games in 29 hours, an incredible feat. They won’t duplicate that in the Big Dance, but so what?
