SOCIAL MEDIA INTERACTION INCREASES GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

  • 08/10/2022

A new international study finds that citizen engagement via social media significantly improves government response and reduces water and air pollution.

Using China as a base for the study, an international team of researchers said they had asked citizen volunteers to send public and private messages on the Chinese blogging site Weibo calling for action after violations occurred at the power plant.

The study indicated that calls from the public to take action led to a reduction in violations by more than 60 percent, according to the study published by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

The researchers found that such calls reduced air and water pollution by 12.2 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively.

"We found that social media is the new public street that drives the momentum for change to get the same result as protests or marches," study co-author Michael Greenstone, director of the Energy Policy Institute, said in a statement. Motivating the government, more specifically, shows that providing the public with information about polluting emissions of factories and plants can lead to less pollution."

The study indicated that when social media posts increased visibility through 'likes' and 'shares' - which in turn enhanced the appearance of public support - government officials were 40 percent more likely to respond and officials to inspect those factories or stations by 40 percent. 65 percent, according to the study.

The researchers noted that while private appeals - sent through a government hotline or online messaging platform - also led to improvements, they had less impact.

"Our study found that social media can be a very effective and easy tool to engage citizens in the government process and hold plant operators accountable," said Shauda Wang, deputy faculty director at the China Chapter of the Energy Policy Institute.

"The fact that more popular social posts stimulated more action by government officials is not surprising, but it confirms that there are plenty of opportunities for citizens to participate in governance and help improve government accountability," Wang added.

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