Communications

The problem with social media: Don’t believe the hype

You’ve got your new website. You’re using Twitter and Facebook to “engage” with residents. Your community has access to all the latest news and information as it happens. The channel shift savings are predicted to be huge…So why isn’t it working? Don’t let the hype surrounding Social Media convince you this is an effective wayRead… Read more »

The Social Media Resolutions I Want You to Make

This blog post originally appeared on my blog, “Social Media Strategery.” Ugh – the phrase 2011 social media resolutions returns more than 12 million search results on Google and I find most of them totally insufferable. Let me guess – in 2011, you resolve to “blog more often,” “double the number of Twitter followers youRead… Read more »

So What Difference Does it Make? Mapping the Outcomes of Citizen Engagement

This 72-page article by John Gaventa and Gregory Barrett was published in 2010 by the Institute for Development Studies. Over the last two decades, the idea that citizen engagement and participation can contribute to improved governance and development outcomes has been mainstreamed in development policy and discourse. Yet despite the normative beliefs that underpin thisRead… Read more »

Government and Social Media–Creating Meaningful Experiences

By Leonard Sipes We are witnessing a fundamental shift in how people communicate. There are few times in world history where that happens and we are witnessing major change right now. For centuries, we traded information about concepts, products and beliefs face-to-face. All that changed with social media and the internet (see “When Did WeRead… Read more »

Cory Booker is a Hero, But Could He Have Done More?

Cory Booker (@corybooker), the mayor of Newark, NJ made headlines recently with his heroic efforts to rescue residents from Snowpocalypse one tweet at a time. Whether its delivery diapers, shoveling entryways, or sending snowplows, he stepped out of bureaucracy to come across as a real, caring human being anxious to aid during a time ofRead… Read more »

How can we play our way to better government?

You may or may not have seen game designer Jane McGonigal’s TED talk, which lofts the idea that video games may actually be one of our paths to saving the world. Her argument is based in part on the feeling gamers typically experience–that is, confidence that they can succeed, patience when they don’t, and determinationRead… Read more »