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The BC government, being anti-social with its massive cuts to social and human services, is having a hard time using social media. No surprise.

The provincial government wants to be your friend/follower. In November 2009, its public affairs bureau quietly launched a new social media/online communications unit. The unit – which was formed using existing resources – has eight staffers including a director, a manager, two visual communications officers and four social media/online communications officers.

via Getting friendly – Public Eye Online.

Here is one sad example of the output of the 8-person operation. “It’s about YOU. It’s about US. It’s about B.C.” is about as empty as the BC Liberals’ humanitarian streak.

This Facebook page started with posts for the last few days of March and has a total of one post for April.

It’s visual motif is distinct from both the BC government websites and the BC Liberal party, indicating an attempt to distance the content on that page from the ruling party, at the very least.

The page has only 195 “fans”. That’s crazy low, and it includes a bunch who are ardent fighters of this government, likely using the page to track the government’s spin.

And the page is all about BC boosterism and spin. It’s a transparent, uni-directional, broadcast marketing vehicle to paint a rosy picture. That in itself disrespects the nature of social media: member participation.

I expect more people will become fans, but I don’t expect the page will do anything more than the press releases that become news at corporate media sites.

In the end, this government won’t likely do well in social media essentially because its egalitarian nature is incompatible with the BC Liberals’ draconian agenda.

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Stephen Elliott-Buckley

Post-partisan eco-socialist. at Politics, Re-Spun

Stephen Elliott-Buckley is a husband, father, professor, speaker, consultant, former suburban Vancouver high school English and Social Studies teacher who changed careers because the BC Liberal Party has been working hard to ruin public education. He has various English and Political Science degrees and has been writing political, social and economic editorials since November 2002. Stephen is in Twitter, Miro and iTunes, and the email thing, and at his website, dgiVista.org.

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