The information and discussion with Mr. Jack about
utilization of Social media by New York
Police Department in the class today has been very interesting.
While initiating the discussion Mr Jack told
that the hurricane Katrina really got people to understand the importance of social media in terms of
communications. This opened eyes, as to how we can use social media as a great
tool to communicate with the public in case of any emergency. It can also
communicate the action being taken preparation in emergencies. It has been helpful to get a lot more
cooperation from public.
In response to questions of Professor Mergel,
he informed that Twitter (https://twitter.com/nyspolice) and
Facebook(https://www.facebook.com/nyspolice) are used by the New York
State Troopers for a lot of activities like highlights of police work, disseminating
information about public safety, information about traffic jam and engaging the
public online. The images of wanted criminals are posted on the Facebook page. The
department’s Facebook page, also provides information and displays photographs
of officers, police dogs and other department items. New York Police has a
separate website also for state troopers which is commonly associated with highway
patrol. However their duties extend far beyond the asphalt. The activities can
be seen visiting website http://troopers.ny.gov/ .
In reply to the question of a student about
providing limited information, he told that there are lots of concerns,
sensitivity, confidentiality and privacy issues. Therefore, we cannot put all
information on the social media. We want to engage public, but we do not want
make any information unless it is verified. We do not tweet photos of evidence
and limit the information to what can be officially released. But the new
initiative will lead to more direct interaction with the public such as
reporting suspicious activity or providing other tips. Sometimes, to engage
public with Facebook and Twitter site of New York Police, some interesting material
of blog like canine (related to dog training) is also posted.
In spite of budget constraints, Mr. Jack has
taken commendable initiative to use social media tool as a primary platform for
public awareness, single source for providing information to media, and creating a business intelligence. The
experience shared by him during interactive session with Professor Mergel will
help up in building social media plan for our organization.
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