Mixing new media & government is hard
The Center for American Progress recently released a report analyzing the Obama administration's use of social media and Web 2.0 tools thus far.
They concluded that the administration has not lived up to the high expectations it set during the campaign, mostly due to the realities & restrictions of how the federal government operates. The report identifies four primary obstacles to large-scale government adoption of new media tools.
I see a fifth that is perhaps more meaningful than the first four.
During the campaign, Obama for America employed almost two hundred staff working on new media across the country. That staff was then supplemented by hundreds of volunteers (including myself in Seattle). The White House New Media staff has only ten employees. It is difficult if not impossible for this smaller and more centralized staff to meet the increased responsibilities and demand of President Obama (compared with those of candidate Obama).
One reason the campaign was so successful in new media was because it valued and funded the work. It will take time for that to happen at the White House.
Scale
During the campaign, the staff had to reach tens of millions of voters. From the White House, the requirement is to serve hundreds of millions of citizens. That's a big difference, and making up that difference with a fraction of the staff isn't feasible. These larger numbers also mean more participants. Online forums that would have had had hundreds of participants now have hundreds of thousands. This is both a staff capacity and technical capacity (read: servers) issue.
Clearance
When the government makes a statement, it is official United States policy. When a candidate [or a volunteer or a surrogate] makes a statement, they are speaking for themselves alone. The beauty of new media is its inherent ability to empower individuals. This clashes against the need for opinions, positions, and policy to be cleared with any relevant government agency before release. The report has a good example that talks about how a campaign can use the words of an expert as a talking point, but the White House must be much more careful.
Authorization
Similar to clearance, actions on behalf of the government must be authorized by the government. In the campaign, ad hoc, decentralized volunteer work worked to the advantage of the Obama for America organization. They gave only minimal direction and let people act independently on their behalf.
This is a much riskier proposition now because the government is responsible for the words and deeds of the people it dispatches.
Understanding
More than any other challenge, an understanding of this technology must be disseminated from the White House New Media team to the rest of the Federal Agencies. There are smart employees doing important work who are unfamiliar with these new tools and their potential.
Exposure, examples, and training on new media techniques will help address the other concerns and, most importantly, give more people a chance to innovate in exciting ways. The White House has already begun placing new media directors at some agencies (like the Departments of Interior and Commerce).
There will surely be more.
These roles are important in changing our government in ways that reflect more closely how people interact & communicate, and in ways that will make them more visible, relevant, and useful to the public they serve.
They concluded that the administration has not lived up to the high expectations it set during the campaign, mostly due to the realities & restrictions of how the federal government operates. The report identifies four primary obstacles to large-scale government adoption of new media tools.
I see a fifth that is perhaps more meaningful than the first four.
- Staff
- Scale
- Clearance
- Authorization
- Understanding
During the campaign, Obama for America employed almost two hundred staff working on new media across the country. That staff was then supplemented by hundreds of volunteers (including myself in Seattle). The White House New Media staff has only ten employees. It is difficult if not impossible for this smaller and more centralized staff to meet the increased responsibilities and demand of President Obama (compared with those of candidate Obama).
One reason the campaign was so successful in new media was because it valued and funded the work. It will take time for that to happen at the White House.
Scale
During the campaign, the staff had to reach tens of millions of voters. From the White House, the requirement is to serve hundreds of millions of citizens. That's a big difference, and making up that difference with a fraction of the staff isn't feasible. These larger numbers also mean more participants. Online forums that would have had had hundreds of participants now have hundreds of thousands. This is both a staff capacity and technical capacity (read: servers) issue.
Clearance
When the government makes a statement, it is official United States policy. When a candidate [or a volunteer or a surrogate] makes a statement, they are speaking for themselves alone. The beauty of new media is its inherent ability to empower individuals. This clashes against the need for opinions, positions, and policy to be cleared with any relevant government agency before release. The report has a good example that talks about how a campaign can use the words of an expert as a talking point, but the White House must be much more careful.
Authorization
Similar to clearance, actions on behalf of the government must be authorized by the government. In the campaign, ad hoc, decentralized volunteer work worked to the advantage of the Obama for America organization. They gave only minimal direction and let people act independently on their behalf.
This is a much riskier proposition now because the government is responsible for the words and deeds of the people it dispatches.
Understanding
More than any other challenge, an understanding of this technology must be disseminated from the White House New Media team to the rest of the Federal Agencies. There are smart employees doing important work who are unfamiliar with these new tools and their potential.
Exposure, examples, and training on new media techniques will help address the other concerns and, most importantly, give more people a chance to innovate in exciting ways. The White House has already begun placing new media directors at some agencies (like the Departments of Interior and Commerce).
There will surely be more.
These roles are important in changing our government in ways that reflect more closely how people interact & communicate, and in ways that will make them more visible, relevant, and useful to the public they serve.
# Posted by Garlin II : 11:35 AM
Comments:
Post a Comment