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This Is How The LAPD Writes Its Tweets
(Via @LAPDHQ)
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WE'RE ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS ABOUT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THAT KEEP YOU UP AT NIGHT. IF YOU HAVE ONE, ASK IT HERE.
The Los Angeles Police Department's official Twitter account, @LAPDHQ, has 146,000 followers. Depending on the day, they post anywhere from one to over 10 times.
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You might get anything from information about a fire...
The LAPD has several units on scene assisting with traffic control on this brush fire, which from initial reports started in the City of LA and has since moved into the City of Glendale. There are NO evacuations in the City of LA. https://t.co/F971OCJ45J
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) August 26, 2019
To updates on a possible active shooter...
UPDATE: 2 suspects have been detained. No evidence of a shooting at this point. Preliminary information is a possible robbery, but the investigation is still ongoing. Please continue to avoid the area and expect a large police presence.
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) August 25, 2019
To adorable baby animals.
Yes, we know we’re super cute, but we belong in the wild, and not in someone’s backpack while getting arrested in DTLA. Thanks @LAPDCentralArea for making sure we ended up in the caring hands of LA Animal Services.
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) July 30, 2019
P.S. Do we get a cool cop name after all of this? pic.twitter.com/hfKm2URGx2
But as with any company, organization or governing body, it's not always clear who is responsible for writing or vetting the tweets. With that in mind, LAist reader Natali Hopkins wrote in and asked us, "Who at the LAPD decides what/when is shared on their Twitter? What about when it's related to police-involved shootings?"
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According to Josh Rubenstein, LAPD's public information director, the account is a collaborative effort between himself, a social media team, public information officers (aka spokespeople), police officers, sergeants and commanders. In other words, "there are many eyes on every post," he said.
On days when there's no breaking news, the team gets together to figure out what the "biggest, most important story of the day is" and tweets that information out to their followers, Rubenstein said. When there is breaking news, tweets are crafted by a spokesperson who has been sent to the scene.
That spokesperson gets facts from a police commander who is also on the scene, and then relays the information back to headquarters. "When it's coming from the scene, we let [the commanders] take the lead" in terms of what information is most important to release to the public, Rubenstein said.
He added that the department's goals with their social media accounts are tri-fold:
- Release public safety information quickly and effectively
- Educate the public about policing
- Manage the image of the LAPD
"These are men and women who are doing a very complicated job every day," Rubenstein said. "They're doing it with professionalism and great integrity. They are facing challenges that you can't even imagine. We are trying to portray those challenges in a meaningful way."
When it comes to officer-involved shootings, the procedure is no different, although it is more sensitive.
"Those are our most critical incidents, and they are very sensitive," Rubenstein said. "We want to make sure we are putting out information that is absolutely vetted. But otherwise, there is nothing different that we do."
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