China Police Tweets with the Public

We have a list of 18 really interesting ways people are using Twitter and that includes stopping bicycle thieves in Boston.

We’re seeing a similar use in China’s micro-blog, Sina Weibo (新浪微博).

The police department in Beijing has found micro-blogging a useful way to connect with the public. Peace Beijing (平安北京) is the official Sina Weibo micro-blog account of the Beijing Public Security Bureau and with over 300,000 followers, the initiative seems to be well received.

Sina Weibo currently has over 50 million users and is widely popular among online users in China. This micro-blog account is primarily used to inform the public with news ranging from traffic accidents to safety messages. A micro-blogging platform would allow the Beijing Police department to quickly disseminate information to thousands of people. Sina Weibo’s threaded comments feature has also made it the perfect tool for conversations.

Besides safety related messages, the Beijing Police department profile also shares stories. One of the weibo (tweet) mourns over two policemen who were killed during their course of work. That weibo itself has gathered over 180 comments with many sending their condolences.

Translated via Google Translate:

The government use of social media to connect with the public deserves a pat on the back. Its bio also states that it welcomes any comments and suggestions. Somehow, this initiative has pushed China a tiny step forward towards freedom of speech. The profile has gathered a lively community with multiple comments on each weibo. Clearly, the strategy is working. People are learning more about public alerts and commenting on them. Hopefully, we can see more of such social media initiatives from the Chinese government.