Local governments join in the online media fun
The thousands of Webcam owners populating the free video-sharing Web site YouTube have new neighbors: local governments. From Chicago to the little town of South Sioux City, Neb., governments are posting videos for their constituencies — and the world — to see.
In February, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley launched his own YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/mayordaley, to give residents a behind-the-scenes look at city government. “YouTube has become a worldwide phenomenon allowing people to watch hundreds of millions of videos a day that create discussion and spark debate,” Daley said in a statement.
YouTube and similar sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, can make government more accessible to tech-savvy, highly connected young people, says Dale Bowen, assistant executive director for program development for the Washington-based Public Technology Institute (PTI). “It’s an effort to reach the millennials and try to get them involved and engaged in government,” Bowen says.
South Sioux City, Neb., has been publishing an average of two videos a month for the past two years, and has been exclusively posting them on YouTube for about nine months, says the city’s Communications Director Patty McGill. The videos typically feature community events, and they have received more than 6,000 views since December 2007.
South Sioux City’s YouTube presence also is becoming part of the city’s economic development advertising initiative to attract permanent residents, McGill says. “We have a lot of people who come into this area, graduate from our high schools and colleges, and move away, so we’re looking for some retention there,” she says. The city also plans to open accounts on MySpace, Facebook and Twitter for the same purpose.
However, while they may be interested in communicating with residents via the Internet, some officials are concerned about posting their community’s messages on a Web site that also features material that could be considered offensive, Bowen says. “[Local government officials] want to do it, but [they’re] a little afraid to do it.”
TWITTER ME THIS, TWITTER ME THAT
In February, Portland, Ore., launched the nation’s first “Twisitor Center.” Twitter.com users post up to 140-character questions about Portland — such as where to find a particular restaurant or which hotel best suits their needs — and add the identifier #inpdx. Staff from Travel Portland, the official destination marketing organization for the city, respond to the questions.