The Social Network as a Government Vehicle
Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Wikipedia, MySpace and others have simply revolutionized the way we act online and socialize on the web. From regarding the web as a place to publish your content for others to read (if they find it), the web has truly become a place where people meet and interact.
The connection and interaction between people on these sites and with these tools has just amazed us all. It is slowly but steadily putting the individual and its personal features center, and instead of focusing on what they may have recently published (a hurdle for many), the individual is right there, able and ready to share the things they know with people they know.
The hurdle to share things with a more focused group of people, whether being relatives, schoolmates, former collegues or friends, is much lower than just throwing it out in cyberspace to a bunch (if you’re lucky) of anonymous readers. Suddenly the web becomes more humane, simply because sites become people.
The one group lagging behind here are Governments. Few Governments, and their agencies, have taken on board the obvious challenge of, through social networks, actually using the possibility to engage in a direct dialogue with their constituency. The mantra should of course be “Follow the Audience“. Traditional media simply isn’t enough if you need to reach your audience. Simply because a lot of them aren’t there like they used to be.
Continue reading ‘The Social Network as a Government Vehicle’
