Have you heard that there is a class focused just on social media use in government agencies (as well as a discussion of e-government in general) that will be held online in January? It is through the University of California in San Diego (UCSD) and will run over 6 weeks from January until the endRead… Read more »
Social media in government has experienced an evolution in the past three years, since the administration’s Open Government Directive forced it into the mainstream of every agency’s operations. Each step in this evolution can be summed up by one word and one driving question, and each has had countless articles devoted first to exploring theRead… Read more »
Most government employyees and agencies protect their computers by installing and updating reliable anti-virus software. Managers, IT staff and front-line workers understand the threats posed by malicious software, and they know that they have to take steps to counter that threat. But as more agencies take advantage of social media, new risks emerge that mayRead… Read more »
It’s terrifying. There. I said it. Judge all you like, if you’ve ever run one yourself. Have you? Or have you just sat there in your comfortable ergonomic chair in your comfortable study in your comfortable house sniping at everyone else getting it wrong? Because I hold my hand up freely – I was inRead… Read more »
Please join us at GovDelivery’s event on Wednesday, October 19th, Social Media’s Role In Cost Effective Solutions. The theme for this week is ways to engage your key stakeholders. Much of this is remembering your customer service skills. One strategy is to think carefully about the way you interact with your community offline, and tryRead… Read more »
In the month of August, the East Coast was hit with two natural disasters, one foreseen, Hurricane Irene, and one without notice, the August 23rd earthquake. Though one primary form of established media failed—phone service during the earthquake was interrupted for many, if not most—both government agencies and individual citizens used social media to learnRead… Read more »
Please join us at GovDelivery’s event on Wednesday, October 19th, Social Media’s Role In Cost Effective Solutions. Managing a social media initiative is no easy task. There are a lot of nuances to properly manage your social media program. If you are currently managing a program, or starting a new social media initiative, here areRead… Read more »
The profile for @DODASSMC reads: “The Army’s Director of Online and Social Media Division coordinates these monthly meetings for professional development and networking of DOD social media folks.” For the past two months, I’ve had the pleasure of addressing that group, and I’ve come to realize that it’s time for me to embrace (resurrect?) myRead… Read more »
As Katherine Maher pointed out on Twitter, no one gets credit when contingency plans work. And it is truly amazing how much government-citizen information collaboration has evolved–not to mention the growth of data journalism even in the most traditional news outlets. The average citizen had a wealth of accurate (and useful) hurricane information to chooseRead… Read more »
Last week, I had the opportunity to present for the Maryland Association of Counties (MACO) summer meeting along with Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz. Earlier this year, he announced that Baltimore County would be launching 23 technology initiatives and he shared a bit about their social media efforts to communicate more effectively with citizens onRead… Read more »