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CAPITOL Research The council of State governMenTs 2011 MAY CAPITOL reseArch TECHNOLOGY State Officials Cautiously Engage Social Media Social media is becoming an established channel of communication Social media is becoming ubiquitous. For example, the popular social networking utility Facebook is now used by more than a half billion people—a milestone it reached in the summer of 2010.1 The popularity of social media is creating a new communications environ- ment that can both empower and imperil state officials as they strive to better serve the public interest. The National Association of State Chief Informa- tion Officers suggests states look to the following examples of use when confronting this new reality: State Leaders Join the Conversation • Private sector investment and use of social media, The business and nonprofit sectors are engaged • Political campaign use of social media, because social media represents a substantial audience. • Federal and local government engagement in In Washington, almost 58 percent of the population is social media, and on Facebook, making the state a leader in social media • Heightened expectations of citizens from all de- use.5 State leaders, many of whom come to state gov- mographics to communicate online.2 ernment with social networks from political campaigns, are continuing to use these tools to remain engaged Both private and nonprofit sectors can provide with an increasingly connected public. DCI Group, a concrete examples of how to deliver better customer Washington, D.C.-based public relations firm, recently service and collaborate on best practices. The health conducted a review of state officials on social media and insurance provider Cigna has a communications and found the following: customer service staff who monitors Twitter for tweets about the company. If a customer tweets about a nega- tive experience, the company will quickly identify this Facebook use: complaint and respond to it on Twitter.3 This diligence • All 50 governors are on Facebook. not only improves relationships with the affected • More than one-third of state legislators across the customer, but it also gives the company a chance to country are on Facebook. form an appropriate response that can calm the ripple • Every state has at least one legislator using the effect of critical comments in a social media environ- social networking site. ment. In the nonprofit sector, technology professionals have shared best practices and other training resources Twitter use: via the website WeAreMedia.4 The site functions as • Forty-eight governors use Twitter. a wiki—a website where individuals can log in and • More than 10 percent of state legislators use the collaboratively edit the content of the web pages. The service. net effect is that good ideas are instantly and easily • More than 80 state legislative caucuses have a distributed among an interested community. Twitter presence.6 The Council of State Governments The council of State governMenTs 1 media to be one of these emerging platforms’ key attributes. State officials have the ability to dis- tribute information quickly during emergencies, without necessarily syncing their communications with the traditional news cycle. • Enhanced collaboration—The group identified the power of internal wikis to allow anyone regard- less of location or time to collaborate. • Enhanced public safety—Participants emphasized that social media could allow for the rapid and viral spread of information, often via status up- dates. This could help quickly get the word out on important safety information. Social media also enables officials to search for and target informa- tion to an at-risk audience. • Information dissemination and exchange—Partici- pants considered social media’s ability to reach a wider audience, including younger genera- tions who are often inexperiencedwith regard to For many state officials, social media is a new frontier government services, to be an important benefit. with both opportunities and risks. Nonetheless, it is a Furthermore, social media lets the public pro- frontier they are exploring. The University at Albany’s vide feedback to published information and can Center for Technology and Government has produced enhance internal agency communication. two publications that provide a thoughtful framework for government officials considering why and how they • “Coolness” factor—Participants believed social media might best use social media. The reports explore useful demonstrated a government’s flexibility to changing insights such as the perceived advantages and risks of media and put a human face on bureaucracies. using social media, as well as policies and guidelines for best practices. In the first of the University of Albany • Improved training capabilities—Participants believed reports, researchers surveyed a group of government social media’s ability to disseminate and exchange professionals from the state of New York to identify what information allowed for a more organized exchange participants perceived to be the benefits and risks of using of educational materials. social media in government.7 Highlights from the govern- ment professionals’ feedback are provided below. • Documentation—Social media provides a com- mon and consistent platform for storing informa- tion. Because answers could appear in a common The project participants believed social online space, this would also assist with making media use in government had the following answers to public inquiries more consistent. advantages: • Cost saving—Participants noted social media enables virtual collaboration, which could reduce • Greater competitiveness in employee recruiting— travel costs. Communities also can be harnessed Having a presence in social media would allow to provide answers to the public, which reduces states to build awareness with the next genera- strain on, and expenses for, government workers. tion, which would in turn help with employee recruitment. The project participants believed social • Enhanced access for the disabled—Disseminating media use in government had the following services through social media would make access to certain government services more convenient. disadvantages: • Creation of virtual communities—Social media servic- • Resources—Officials worried about the technical es would empower interested members of the public challenges of social media, such as use of band- to organize around specific issues. Officials believed width and the potential for malware to penetrate such communities could provide a valuable collab- existing systems. Social media could open up orative resource, which could reduce the burden of officials to an unmanageable number of inquiries common inquiries on limited government staff. from the public. Language barriers also could be an issue. Information technology personnel would • Instantaneous information sharing—Government also need to train and monitor personnel for ap- professionals perceived the immediacy of social propriate and legal use of the tools. 2 The council of State governMenTs • Legal and regulatory ramifications—Participants • Content—Some governments specify who should identified four areas of concern: appropriate use manage social media content and how many, if of tools; accuracy of posted content; compliance any, individuals oversee this process. with state and federal laws, such as the Freedom of Information Act; and potential consequences • Security—This important feature of social media of legal agreements with social media providers policies focuses on the technical side, such as that might have terms unacceptable to the state. requiring complex passwords, and also not posting sensitive information. • Governance—The group expressed concern about how to control who is allowed to post and what • Legal issues—Many of the legal issues revolve content can be posted or associated with an offi- around the maintenance of public records as well cial page. Certain advertisements might also cause as disclaimers to distinguish personal comments confusion. from official agency positions. • Making a business case—As conducting a cost- • Citizen conduct—Several policies delineate the benefit analysis would be difficult for social media types of comments acceptable in social media. initiatives because the landscape is dynamic, officials were concerned with how to best allocate These reports by The Center for Technology and the investment of precious time. Government represent some of the leading insights into how government officials can participate in so- • Security—The group was concerned that malware cial media responsibly. While the use of social media could penetrate the agency and/or affect the carries pitfalls—some with legal ramifications—par- public, and that sensitive information could be ticipation allows state agencies to weigh in with exposed or leaked. authority on conversations that may happen even if state officials refrain from using these new platforms. • Accessibility—Participants were concerned that It also allows them to interactively communicate with citizens who did not have high-speed access might the public—a level of engagement the public increas- be further left behind. ingly expects. • Perception—Officials fear social media could be seen as a recreational activity that is inappropri- Nathan Dickerson, CSG Research Analyst ate for government officials. [email protected] • Information overload—They also expressed concern that the sheer volume of information transmitted across social media could overwhelm
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