This article examines the growing interest since 2008 of UK police forces in the use of social media as a basis for engagement with the public. This interest is set in the context of a political agenda for increasing public trust and confidence in the police and enlistment of the public as jointly responsible for crime reduction. An ambitious national police agenda led by the Association of Chief Police Officers has promoted the use of social media to engage groups previously uninvolved in discussion of local policing, and has envisaged its use as a basis for deliberation about priorities. This article investigates how successful this endeavour has been, and how far a hierarchical organisation ‐ the police service ‐ has been able to exploit the networked characteristics of social media and the potential of user created content. The paper analyses the police use of one particular platform, Twitter, including the structure of networks and the content of the messages. The article concludes that the constraints of police culture have meant that Twitter has been used cautiously and as a reinforcement for existing means of communication. It puts forward key issues which need to be addressed if the more ambitious aims for social media are to be achieved.

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The widespread adoption of new forms of digital communication platforms such as micro-blogging sites presents both an opportunity and a challenge for researchers interested in understanding people's attitudes and behaviours, especially in the context of unfolding crises and the need for government agencies such as the police to inform the public and act swiftly to ensure public order and safety. In this paper, we use a study of a recent public order crisis in England to explore how the police, other organisations and individuals used Twitter as they responded to this event.

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