It’s not a part of any job description, but many police departments, fire departments, and other first responder agencies have added social media management to their list of weekly, if not daily, to dos.
In a national survey of 553 police departments in 44 states, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) found that 96.4 percent of agencies were using social media in 2015, and of the 23 that were not, 17 said they were contemplating it.
“People are getting their news more on social media now,” said Mount Hope Police Chief Paul Rickard.
Due to his interest in technology and social media, Rickard has been one of the forerunners in the county when it comes to law enforcement and social media. Rickard set up the department’s Facebook and Twitter accounts in 2012, and is one of the few that has Instagram and Youtube. Time and manpower permitting, he would like to be on Google+ as well.
Rickard sees social media as another tool to reach more people more quickly when an emergency happens, as well as disseminate accurate information straight from the source.
