Social Media in the Public Sector: A Guide to Participation, Collaboration and Transparency in The Networked World / Edition 1

by Ines Mergel

Overview

Grounded in solid research, Social Media in the Public Sector explores the myriad uses of social media in the public sector and combines existing practices with theories of public administration, networked governance, and information management. Comprehensive in scope, the book includes best practices, the strategic, managerial, administrative, and procedural aspects of using social media, and explains the theoretical dimensions of how social behavior affects the adoption of social media technologies.

Praise for Social Media in the Public Sector

"Mergel has produced a foundational work that combines the best kind of scholarship with shoe-leather reporting and anthropology that highlights the debates that government agencies are struggling to resolve and the fruits of their efforts as they embrace the social media revolution. Social Media in the Public Sector is a first and sets a high standard against which subsequent analysis will be measured."

—Lee Rainie, director, Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project

"Mergel is an award-winning author who again wields her story skills in this book. She excels in explaining in concrete, practical terms how government managers can use social media to serve the public. Her book puts years of research into one handy guide. It's practical. It's readable. And it's an essential read."

—John M. Kamensky, senior fellow, IBM Center for The Business of Government

"Mergel moves beyond the hype with detailed, comprehensive research on social media technologies, use, management, and policies in government. This book should be required reading for researchers and public managers alike."

—Jane Fountain, professor and director, National Center for Digital Government, University of Massachusetts Amherst

"Comprehensive and compelling, Social Media in the Public Sector makes the case that to achieve Government 2.0, agencies must first adopt Web 2.0 social technologies. Mergel explains both how and why in this contemporary study of traditional institutions adopting and adapting to new technologies."

—Beth Simone Noveck, United States Deputy Chief Technology Officer (2009-2011)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118109946
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	10/30/2012
Series:	Essential Texts for Nonprofit and Public Leadership and Mangement
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.40(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Ines Mergel is assistant professor of public administration at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and the School of Information Studies (iSchool) at Syracuse University.

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Table of Contents

Figures and Tables ix

Acknowledgments xv

About the Author xvii

Part One: Understanding Social Media Use in the Public Sector 1

1 Introduction 3

2 Social Media Technologies in the Public Sector 9

3 Drivers for the Use of Social Media in the Public Sector 37

4 Barriers to the Use of Social Media in the Public Sector 54

5 Regulations and Directives for the Use of Social Media in the Public Sector 71

6 Social Media Policy Considerations 89

7 Social Media Metrics 122

Part Two: Social Media Practices: Participation, Collaboration, and Transparency 145

8 Participation 2.0 147

9 Collaboration 2.0 180

10 Transparency 2.0 211

11 Future Development in Social Technologies in Government 232

Appendix: Overview of Social Media Accounts in the U.S. Federal Government 243

Glossary 265

References 271

Index 291