Does Police Use of Twitter Align With and Enhance Community Policing Objectives? An Analysis of the New York City Police Department’s Twitter Activity

Abstract

Prior research has examined how social media has been integrated into law enforcement operations; however, this research has not fully explored the potential for this technology to function as an effective community policing strategy. Through the creation of a uniquely large dataset constructed with individual “tweets,” the current study analyzed Twitter use by the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in 2016. Using a mixed-methods approach, this research identified linkages between social media and community policing, the level of adherence to community policing objectives, the potential for heterogeneity in usage across different NYPD patrol boroughs, and the degree of public engagement. Our findings suggest Twitter is inimitably positioned to contribute to each aspect of community policing, although its effectiveness varied across dimension typology. Second, heterogeneity was also observed across patrol boroughs, indicating both the objectives and application of social media varies within the agency. Lastly, engagement metrics reveal a few notable trends concerning police-community relations.

Spreading information or engaging the public? The German police’s communication on Twitter

“…This dynamic seems to be somewhat different compared to findings from other contexts, e.g. North America or the U.K., where tweets of the police are more actively used for building community relations and thus are more geared to a specific local population (Crump, 2011;O'Connor, 2017;Thomas et al, 2022).…”

“…Akkaya, Fedorowicz, & Krcmar, 2019;Denef, Bayerl, & Kaptein, 2013), cover a more limited geographical area (e.g. Thomas et al, 2022), or focus on specific characteristics of messages such as emotional elements (e.g. Leppert, Saliterer, & Korać, 2022).…”

“…This means that characteristics of the environment can impact their communication (Jungblut & Jungblut, 2021). For example, a study of the use of Twitter by departments of the NYPD highlights that the social media strategy is heterogenous across departments and that Twitter is used in line with local precincts' needs and characteristics of the area that is being policed (Thomas et al, 2022). This shows that the environment can create different demands for communication.…”

“…While the factors that our study focuses on are the main aspects raised in the literature, some studies raise additional aspects. Thomas et al (2022), for example, point out that other characteristics of the policed area such as existence of major tourist destinations has an influence on how police use Twitter. Moreover, they argue that the existence of an overarching communication strategy can have a positive influence on the likelihood of police engaging more in dialogue through Twitter.…”

“…Prior research suggests that the police's use of Twitter is often focused on spreading information (Crump, 2011;Meijer & Thaens, 2013;Meijer & Torenvlied, 2016). However, other studies point to its use in emphasizing public dialogue (O'Connor, 2017;O'Connor & Zaidi, 2020;Thomas, Hatten, & Connealy, 2022;C. B. Williams et al, 2018).…”