Message from the Franklin Police

Published January 24, 2013

People may not always consider government to be progressive, or innovative – but Franklin Police are turning that notion around.

Combining our use of Twitter, and a service called Nixle, FPD’s Public Affairs Office brings the news right to the news consumer. Through these combined methods, we have the opportunity to reach upwards of 30,000 people thanks to shares and retweets, all without a single moment of airtime or print news real estate.

A simple tweet I sent about a power outage in one of our shopping districts reached 27,714 people. That tweet sparked two TV news inquiries, prompting three afternoon TV hits seen by 295,250 viewers.

The power of one tweet is pretty amazing, actually! With that power, comes awesome responsibility to say the right thing. Once it’s out there, it’s out there – and there’s no turning back. Even if you later delete it, it’s been seen and quite possibly saved or forwarded – and that process is unstoppable.

I say that to say this: What you tweet or post should be taken as seriously as a prepared speech you plan on delivering to thousands of people from the podium. My advice…don’t post anything you wouldn’t want an athletic or college recruiter, your mom, dad, or grandparents, or your, one-day, children to hear you say at that podium. Tweet responsibly.

To get up to the minute news and information straight from the source, follow @FranklinTNPD today. To sign up for FPD text alerts, text your zip code to 888777.

From Behind the Badge,

Lieutenant Charles Warner