Access perspectives and design values in government social media usage

Abstract

As a means to interact with citizens, social media presents governments with many opportunities and challenges. The ways in which these technologies are framed in policy, particularly information policies, heavily shape resulting government-citizen interactions. This paper uses a policy analysis approach to detail key policy instruments related to U. S. federal government use of social media. It focuses particularly on access issues, which these policies do not adequately address. Access can be understood to mean many things, and the values underlying access perspectives affect the design and implementation of e-government projects. This paper explicates several definitions of access, illustrates the values underlying these definitions, and suggests opportunities to frame government use of social media in a manner inclusive of as many members of the public as possible.