With crime at an all-time low, the citizens of Seattle have little to fear... except maybe having their Twitter feed crowded by 911 tweets from the police department.
As part of a new initiative to show "what a day in the life of the department was really like," the Seattle police have begun broadcasting emergency dispatches via Twitter. Soon enough, followers received messages warning them of suspicious characters throughout the city, aggressive panhandlers, armed crazies and junkies. Evoking a similar reaction as decade-old police scanners, the 911 tweets have found fans and unamused citizens alike. Some found the project irritating and the information useless, while others lauded the proactive attitude of the police force.
After a full day of tweeting, Sgt. Sean Whitcomb of the Seattle police declared the initiative a success. In fact, inspired by their fellow enforcers, police departments around the country have began tweeting about local criminal activity. I am excited by the idea and welcome tweets as an alternative to intrusive security cameras.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Real-time Emergency Alerts
- Police departments could create their own emergency alert systems through Twitter or other social media platforms.
- Crowdsourced Surveillance
- Citizens could potentially assist police in identifying and locating suspects through Twitter or other social media platforms.
- Transparency in Law Enforcement
- More police departments could follow Seattle's lead and use social media to show what a typical day looks like for officers, improving trust and transparency with citizens.
Where This Applies
- Law Enforcement
- Police departments could use social media to improve emergency communication and collaboration with citizens.
- Technology
- Social media platforms or third-party companies could develop technologies to enhance the functionality of police department tweets (e.g. automatic alerts for specific keywords).
- Marketing
- Social media marketing professionals could learn from the success of Seattle Police Department's Twitter initiative and use similar strategies to increase brand engagement and transparency.
