State agencies go online

Posted to the Georgia Department of Corrections' Facebook page is a notification that says 13 people "like" the photo album of 143 cadets who graduated from one of the department's training classes.

In another section of the department's site, alerts for events are accessible for anyone to see.

"We wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to expand our audience and put out a positive message about the department," said Georgia Department of Corrections spokeswoman Kristen Stancil.

SOCIAL MEDIA BY STATEGEORGIA* Department of Corrections* Department of Transportation* Georgia Bureau of Investigation (unofficial Facebook)* Emergency Management Agency* Department of Natural Resources* State of Georgia GovernmentTENNESSEE* Department of Correction* Department of Transportation* State Parks* Emergency Management Association

The department's Facebook page is used to promote public events, board meetings and pictures from those events, while the YouTube page is used to post videos not on its Web site, Ms. Stancil said.

The department is one of several state agencies in Georgia and Tennessee to recently open a Facebook, Twitter or YouTube account to reach out to the masses.

When government agencies use social media sites, it helps with transparency to the public, said Dorinda Carter, Tennessee Department of Correction spokeswoman.

Officially, Ms. Carter still is working on a Facebook page for the Tennessee Department of Correction. She said she began seeing its potential when she posted a job fair on her personal Facebook account and received a lot of interest.

"That made me realize we need to do more with Facebook," she said.

While departments are starting to utilize popular sites to post information, some officials say the sites are not a channel for law enforcement use.

"Facebook is a social page to show support and show morale," said Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead. "But I don't see it as a way to get serious issues out."

The unofficial GBI Facebook page was created by a retired agent as a place to keep up with other agents and to allow the public to show their support for the department, Agent Bankhead said.

The Georgia Department of Corrections has taken the same approach, Ms. Stancil said.

"It is not our intent to use social media sites as a means to notify the public of security issues or concerns of the department," she said.

GBI has used YouTube as an avenue to post videos so the public can contact the bureau with more information, Agent Bankhead said. If another similar case arises, the bureau would use that tool again.

But other departments say Facebook can be another avenue to reach the public on safety issues.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has used Twitter to notify the public of traffic alerts, said department spokeswoman Julie Oaks.

Every major interstate in Tennessee has a Twitter page, Ms. Oaks said. Followers can get updates on each road as the department learns of an accident or road closure and tweets about it.

"We had a lot of success right off the bat," she said.

The department also would use its networks as a public safety tool, Ms. Carter said. If an inmate were to escape from one of the department's facilities, an alert could be posted on Facebook, she said.

There is some danger that comes with using public sites, including people potentially posting false alarms or inappropriate information, she said. But the site is managed by officials, and the department will not respond to incoming comments on the Web, she said.

All questions will still be answered in a traditional way, she said.

"It can be a double-edged sword, (but) I think the advantages will pay off," she said.

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