Comparison of social media use for the U.S. and the Korean governments

Social media allows for the creation of bottom-up online communities that encourage the government to utilize a two-way participatory media model, rather than a traditional broadcast media model. The purpose of this study is to examine the current status of social media usage in both Korean and U.S. governments, present several issues and suggest future directions.     

From e-government to we-government: Defining a typology for citizen coproduction in the age of social media

This paper examines the evolution of citizen coproduction in the age of social media, web 2.0 interactivity, and ubiquitous connectivity. The paper first discusses the re-emergence of citizen coproduction – whereby citizens perform the role of partner rather than customer in the delivery of public services – as a fashionable policy option in the face of persistent budget deficits and the advent of new channels for mass collaboration. Finding a plethora of competing labels, models, and concepts for coproduction in the age of social media, the paper proposes a unified typology to support systematic analysis based on the overarching categories of “Citizen Sourcing,” “Government as a Platform,” and “Do-It-Yourself Government.” To demonstrate its use, the typology is applied to leading U.S. government implementations. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potential implications for public administration, the remaining limitations and rising social concerns, and the possible emergence of a new social contract that empowers the public to play a far more active role in the functioning of their government.     

Understanding risks,benefits, and strategic alternatives of social media applications in the public sector

Social media such as blogs, microblogs or electronic social networks can transform the ways in which we relate to other people and organizations. Government organizations are experimenting with social media to communicate with their constituents, and many analysts see in these media a powerful set of tools to reinvent government–citizen relationships. In this paper, we present the perceptions of risks, benefits and strategic guidelines about social media applications gathered from 250 public servants from Central Mexico, most of them working in information technology, as web masters or responding to Freedom of Information Act requests. The conclusions of the analysis are 1) that governments' participation in social media may result in improved communication and citizen participation, more transparency, and transfer of best practices among government agencies; 2) that a good implementation strategy is necessary to realize these benefits and to avoid risks; and 3) that the implementation of social media highlights the importance of updating laws and regulations, and of promoting changes in government culture and organizational practices.     

Government innovation through social media

Social media in government is becoming one of the major trends in Electronic Government (e-government) research and practice worldwide. During the last few years, several authors have addressed the potential of social media for the innovation of public sector organizations. Most of these contributions have focused on the technical dimensions of social media, while other aspects have not attracted equal attention. In contrast, this introductory article interrogates the role of social media in the basic areas of e-government: government information flows and the availability of government information; the use of information technology to create and provide innovative government services; the impact of information technology on the relationships between the governed and those governing; and the increasing importance of information policies and information technologies for democratic practices. Accordingly, the next few pages propose and develop three dimensions of social media in government: tools, goals, and topics. We think that these dimensions could help to better understand the use of social media in government settings. Then, after a brief review of current trends in social media and government research, we present the articles included in this special issue. Finally, we present some practical lessons and suggest ideas for future research. This special issue could be seen as a starting point for the development of innovation through social media in public administrations around the world.     

An Open Government Maturity Model for social media-based public engagement

Social media has opened up unprecedented new possibilities of engaging the public in government work. In response to the Open Government Directive, U.S. federal agencies developed their open government plan and launched numerous social media-based public engagement initiatives. However, we find that many of these initiatives do not deliver the intended outcomes due to various organizational, technological, and financial challenges. We propose an Open Government Maturity Model based on our field studies with U.S. federal healthcare administration agencies. This model is specifically developed to assess and guide open government initiatives which focus on transparent, interactive, participatory, collaborative public engagement that are largely enabled by emerging technologies such as social media. The model consists of five maturity levels: initial conditions (Level 1), data transparency (Level 2), open participation (Level 3), open collaboration (Level 4), and ubiquitous engagement (Level 5). We argue that there is a logical sequence for increasing social media-based public engagement and agencies should focus on achieving one maturity level at a time. The Open Government Maturity Model helps government agencies implement their open government initiatives effectively by building organizational and technological capabilities in an orderly manner. We discuss challenges and best practices for each maturity level and conclude by presenting recommendations.     

Social capital and relationship maintenance: uses of social media among the South Asian Diaspora in the U.S.

This study uses the framework of bridging and bonding social capital to explore how South Asian immigrants to the U.S. negotiate relationships amongst three social groups: their ties in their home country, their ties to Americans, and their ties to other South Asian immigrants living in the U.S. In so doing, it develops a model for immigrant social media use that contributes to an ongoing reassessment of the notion of community.     

Social media use in the U.S. Executive branch

In 2009, the Obama administration issued the Open Government Initiative that directed Executive agencies to improve transparency, openness in government, and public participation with government. The Obama administration views transparency and openness in government as a cost-effective and efficient process capable of improving public participation with government and public access to government information. To address the initiative in part, many agencies adopt social media as the means to disseminate information out to the public and to increase public participation with agency website content and activities. This exploratory study examines Executive agency use of social media and public participation with the media. Findings indicate that most agencies reviewed do use social media. The public does interact with the media and some agencies experience high overall participation levels; however, there are some issues with agency use of social media and public participation with the media.     

Innovation through social media in the public sector: Information and interactions

This paper conducts a content analysis on the performance of information and interactions in selected Chinese government microblog accounts as innovations in the public sector. In specific, the study examines the quantity, content, stakeholders related, government levels related, timeliness, forms, language styles, sources of message, the use of push, and responses in government accounts. The study finds that a majority of messages in government microblog accounts were posted for self-promotion rather than service delivery. The forms, languages and timeliness of information posted tend to be monotonous, rigid and formal, and the interactions between governments and the public in government microblog accounts were mostly insufficient and preliminary. Furthermore, a longitudinal comparison between data in two sequential years also indicates that government use of microblogs is improved over time. Based on the findings, the paper provides relevant recommendations to governments.     

Understanding the evolution of e-government: The influence of systems of rules on public sector dynamics

Electronic government has been defined as the use of information and communication technologies in government settings. However, it is neither a homogeneous nor a static phenomenon. Recent empirical studies have identified two important dynamics in e-government evolution. First, e-government in general has evolved from its initial presence on the Internet to more transactional and integrated applications. Second, at the aggregate level and as a general trend, national governments have started adding technological and organizational sophistication and state and local governments have followed. Based on the study of systems of rules, this paper argues that these two dynamics in the evolution of e-government are, at least in part, the result of pressures from public managers attempting to solve problems and from citizens, businesses, and other stakeholders, attempting to control the actions of public managers. Both forces, related to performance and accountability, respectively, have promoted change in the systems of rules governing the design, implementation, and use of e-government initiatives. Specifically, they have generated a cycle that continually increases technological and organizational sophistication in e-government initiatives and have also promoted the episodic and evolving adoption of similar features across levels of government. These two related evolutionary dynamics and the characterization of e-government as systems of rules and standards have some important policy implications, which are briefly discussed at the end of the paper.     

Which candidates do the public discuss online in an election campaign?: The use of social media by 2012 presidential candidates and its impact on candidate salience

The effects of new communication technologies on election campaigns, and the effectiveness of media-centered campaign strategies more broadly, remain ongoing subjects for debate in political science. This study provides some of the first empirical evidence about the potential impact of social media on the 2012 U.S. presidential elections, by testing the association between “candidate salience” and the candidates' level of engagement in online social media sphere. We define “candidate salience” as the extent to which candidates are discussed online by the public in an election campaign, and have selected the number of mentions presidential candidates receive on the social media site, Twitter, as means of quantifying their salience. This strategy allows us to examine whether social media, which is widely recognized as disruptive in the broader economic and social domains, has the potential to change the traditional dynamics of U.S. election campaigns. We find that while social media does substantially expand the possible modes and methods of election campaigning, high levels of social media activity on the part of presidential candidates have, as of yet, resulted in minimal effects on the amount of public attention they receive online.     

A framework for Internet of Things-enabled smart government: A case of IoT cybersecurity policies and use cases in U.S. federal government

Internet of Things (IoT) is ubiquitous in society. IoT-enabled dynamic capabilities in real-time sensing and responding can spur digital transformation in unlocking the potential of digital government into data-driven smart government capable of delivering policies and services of public interest and public value. However, the literature indicates challenges in IoT cybersecurity and systemic use across the government. There is the urgent need for IoT research on policy and use. This paper developed a framework for IoT-enabled smart government performance. We applied this framework to conduct case study analyses of digital technology policy, IoT cybersecurity policy, and IoT use in major application domains at the U.S. federal government level. The results show that some agencies were strategic and forward-thinking in funding and partnering with sub-national governments in promoting the IoT use. However, there remains a critical need for national IoT policies to promote systemic IoT use across the application domains.     

Use of digital media and demand for digitized contents in higher education sector of Pakistan

The use of digital media is on rise around the world and same phenomenon is emerging in Pakistan. The study was intended to explore the use of digital media and demand for digitized contents in higher education sector of Pakistan. The research questions were answered by a comprehensive literature review along with semi-structured in-depth interviews of 25 library experts. The findings conferred that the use of digital media in higher education is on rise and demand for digitized contents is growing increasingly. The findings of the study made a good case for the libraries to focus more on acquisition of information resources in digital formats as well as initiate digitization initiatives.     

Cataloging the Congressional Serial Set

ABSTRACT

Many librarians question the usefulness of the traditional cataloging of difficult historic sets in a time when more and more information moves either to the Internet or is digitized outright. One of the most challenging sets to catalog is the United States Congressional Serial Set, a 14,000+ (and growing) mega serial comprised of five monographic sub-series. The Congressional Serial Set is an anomaly since it is both monographic and serial in nature. This article examines the intricacies in cataloging government publications in an electronic atmosphere using one House document in the Serial Set as a guide and examines the two commercial digitization projects currently underway.¹     

Building context-based knowledge of government social media communication through an ethnographic study of the US Coast Guard

Governments are increasing digital communication with citizens, yet little is known about how the public sector influences communicators’ daily social media activities. This ethnographic study uses interviews, documents, and participant observation to offer a rare emic view of the US Coast Guard (USCG) social media program. Breaking up the monolithic public sector communication context, influences on social media communication were nested within five contexts: organization, military, parent agency, federal government, and the US public sector. By observing how the contexts and related attributes influence personnel and the program, the study provides insights related to social media communication processes rather than merely content products. Findings extend theoretical and practical applications by identifying enablers and challenges to government social media communication within an applied context. USCG's culture and history of transparency and engagement drive the strategy, while resource constraints and a devaluing of social media within the decentralized organization constrain program effectiveness and real-time engagement.     

从美国电子媒体势力演变过程看新老媒体竞争(上)

正在走向市场经济的中国媒介产业 ,报刊 ,广播 ,电视以及新兴的网络媒体 ,如何在日益激烈的广告和受众的竞争中占据有利地位 ,并在竞争中协调合作、共同发展 ,是一个紧迫的课题。美国在这方面起步早 ,经验和教训也多 ,日本中央大学综合政治系教授山口秀夫以一个亚洲研究人员看美国新老媒体竞争演化的视角 ,对之进行了详尽的分析 ,相信会给我们一些启发。     

Blockchain governance in the public sector: A conceptual framework for public management

A key challenge behind the adoption of blockchain in the public sector is understanding the dynamics of blockchain governance. Based on a systematic literature review, this article analyzes different approaches to blockchain governance across disciplines and develops a comprehensive conceptual framework for the study of blockchain governance decisions in the public sector. The framework clusters nine types of governance decisions (infrastructure architecture, application architecture, interoperability, decision-making mechanism, incentive mechanism, consensus mechanism, organization of governance, accountability of governance, and control of governance) into three levels of analysis (micro, meso, and macro-levels). Drawing on public management theories and concepts, the article elucidates the implications of various governance choices in each level of governance and provides a primer for researchers and policy practitioners on the design of blockchain-based systems in the public sector.     

A critical examination of social media adoption in government: Introducing omnipresence

As government agencies at every level are adopting social media tools, scholarship is emerging that indicates dialogic potentials meant to increase citizen engagement might not be met. With that premise, we take a critical examination of the way social media can increase capacity for engagement rather encourage collaboration, depending upon the way the tools are constructed. To do so, we expand Lippmann's notion of the phantom public to introduce the theoretical constructs of Omnipresent Citizens and Omnipresent Administrators. These people are everywhere but nowhere and embody characteristics of accessibility, desire to participate, and the possibility of remaining anonymous. Each has implications for citizen participation.     

Connecting best practices in public relations to social media strategies for academic libraries

Academic libraries worldwide use social media to inform and connect with users. Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Libraries is no different and must keep up with rapidly evolving platforms and user expectations. When our presence stretched across twenty-two channels, we needed to ensure that social media efforts were managed in the most effective and efficient manner possible. To develop a research-based, unified vision for communication for new media, we scanned the literature in the library and public relations fields and then surveyed librarians to address identified gaps. Based on results, we offer recommendations focused on best management practices and strong content strategies.     

Electronic services in the public sector: A conceptual framework

Electronic services provided by governmental organizations, here referred to as public e-services, are frequently discussed in the e-government literature. There is, however, little consensus on the meaning of the concepts used to describe and discuss these e-services, and hence, the literature is full of synonymous terms and concepts. This paper is conceptual and presents efforts to understand e-services in the public sector domain by unpacking the public e-service concept into three dimensions; as being (1) a service, (2) electronic, and (3) public (as contrasted to being private). Based on a hermeneutic analysis, these dimensions are discussed in a number of combinations, illustrating that a multi-dimensional take on public e-services must be adopted in order to capture the complexity of governmentally supplied e-services and contribute to theory development, as well as practical utility.     

美国公共图书馆收费状况的远程考察

论文对美国公共图书馆的收费状况进行了分析，目的是为我国公共图书馆收费提供一些有益的参考。