Read Seven Ways Citizens Can Interact With Government Using Social Media

From:  7 Ways Citizens Can Use Social Media To Improve Government  |  By George Knowles  |  OhMyGov

• Use of social media is becoming a more common and important aspect of people’s lives, and the political sphere is no exception.

• Here are seven ways that citizens can use social media to improve how government works for them.

• Calling for transparency -- Social media has the potential to make interactions between the citizens and government more efficient and satisfying.

• Pushing grassroots ideas to the top -- Before, grassroots movements would often languish in obscurity, but social media has the power to quickly move ideas to the forefront of public discourse. 

• “All politics is local” -- Social media can be used to improve the quality and speed of interaction with government when addressing hyper-local issues.

• Saving time and money -- Time and resources can be saved on less immediate and interactive mediums like newsletters, press releases, or telephone calls.

• Drawing attention to unequal or unacceptable city services -- The power of social media can push individual voices to the front of the discussion quickly.

• Crisis management/Disaster relief -- In the event of emergencies, social media has the potential to not only improve government, but to act as sources of crucial information.

• Grassroots organizing -- Nothing is more political than citizens taking to the streets (and cyberspace) to petition the government for change.  The recent Occupy protest movement relies heavily on the use of social media, and the reach that it provides has made the movement a global phenomenon. 

More details can be found at OhMyGov's post.