Social media, government and media organisations
I'm surprised at how the Australian and State Governments, and traditional media organisations complain about social media and the damage it causes, but then continue to use it to their own advantage.
It's rather hypocritical how the Australian and State Governments blame social media for the impact it is having on society, particularly the younger members, but it is happy to use it for their own communication. This is something I have been critical of for quite a while. I even emailed a Government department about it, but didn't get a reply. Perhaps I should have raised my concerns using social media, but this would then have been hypocritical of me, as I don't currently use social media.
A few years ago I had both Facebook and a Twitter (now known as X) accounts, but deleted both when it became clear they were only in it for their own gain. This is to be expected as they have to pay for the service they offer somehow. I joined Facebook to keep in touch with my interstate nieces and nephews, but it became clear I was only ever going to see what Facebook wanted me to see rather than what I would have liked to see. Also, those using social media are so cautious about what they put on it, all I ever saw was a few photos of meals and some obscure scenes as they didn't want everybody to know where or when they were away. On the rare occasion I saw something of interest I could never find it again to show my friends, so I simply deleted my accounts and now try to keep in touch with family through my siblings, directly using email and messages, or, when possible, in person.
Traditional media, like TV news organisations, like to call out social media at every opportunity, but frequently use photos, videos and articles from social media in their news reports. I don't believe you can not like how social media operates, but use it when it suits. You don't have the right to complain about something and then use it when it is convenient for you or it provides an opportunity to reduce your costs. Again traditional media wants social media organisations to pay for the use of their media reports, but they expect to use public Facebook information in their own broadcasts without paying for it.
The Government departments and politicians in Australia all use social media to get their messages out there, even though they all have their own websites. This means people who don’t use social media miss out on more up to date information. The websites are not updated and it is always difficult to find important or timely information. It seems it is easy for a department to use Facebook, but not provide an up to date post on their website for everyone to access without giving away their personal information to large social media companies.
I prefer to run my own website, which I have total control over, rather than use social media and give them free use of my intellectual property. I don’t understand why the Government and traditional media organisations don’t operate the same way. If a social media manager is permitted to make announcements on Facebook or X in a timely manner, then why are they not allowed to post to the department’s website? Is there a perception social media is less formal, so if mistakes are made, they can simply be retracted without anyone being responsible or accountable for the errors. Whereas, if a post to a department’s website is made containing errors, someone would need to be held accountable and take responsibility for the errors.
As a citizen who is not on social media, I am missing out on up to date information. Often when incidents occur and you search for an update, you are referred to social media and if you are not logged in you cannot access the information. Also, going to the website for the relevant agency there are no updates for the particular incident, and often the last update was done several months ago. An example of this is when I get a message on my phone from NSW Police seeking assistance from the public to locate a missing person. The link provided for additional information is to their Facebook page, not their website. Subsequently I am often unable to view this information. This information is never provided on their website, so they are encouraging the use of social media, over the use of their own website, and excluding those who do not use social media.
And I now ask the obvious question, why?