12/1/2014 - NPD Facebook Post / 11.29.14 / "Dont you have anything better to do?"
"Don't you have anything better to do with your time?".... or….”Shouldn’t they be out doing their jobs solving crime not sitting around playing on Facebook?"….. these are questions, (....well really more “Statements”…) made by individuals after we have posted some of our "silly" posts that we… somewhat frequently … place up on our NPD Facebook Page.
I have frequently seen these comments and often wanted to reply, but just have not had the right opportunity to do so… until now! So – Let me address these questions ...or, Ehhh - "statements" here in this “Post-Thanksgiving” post....
First and foremost... let me assure everyone that the officers of the Naugatuck PD are out there working hard, doing their jobs every single day ... and, this of course includes the element of solving of crimes…
I, on the other hand, as the NPD's “Public Information Officer” (or “PIO”) am responsible for drafting and posting all of the NPD’s “Public Information”… This is done in many different ways and through various formats including press releases, email updates, phone and live press interviews and of course, it also includes posting to the police department’s web page and Facebook page.
The “PIO” role is just one of my many responsibilities … trust me when I tell you, there is no shortage of work for me to do... besides being the PIO, I am also responsible for overseeing the Records Division, Training Division, Court Liaison and Property Divisions, I also manage the PD’s ever-growing Information Technology function as well as conducting and overseeing the department’s Internal Investigations function... Believe me, I stay busy… However, of all these duties I feel my most important responsibilities are in my community relations function which is now very closely tied through social media and the PIO role.
Now it is true that there is quite some time that is put into these posts …but truth be told, many of these “silly” posts are written on "my own time" ... that is, time I'm not on the clock at the PD... take this post for instance, I am writing this post on my Iphone while out with my wife and teenage daughters Christmas shopping.... I'm here typing away - trying to keep my mind occupied and away from the thoughts of how much this Christmas season is going to cost me and.…. OH MY LORD…. MY WIFE AND DAUGHTERS JUST WALKED INTO A JEWELRY STORE!!! – uhh, excuse me everyone – I have to go handle a “situation”, I’ll be right back….
….Whew, they were just “Looking” … man, that was a close one! ….Ok – where was I?.... Oh yes – the writing of the “silly” posts… Like I was saying, I often write these posts while away from work… not for any particular reason but often it is simply because I am much to occupied with my other responsibilities to try and be so… well… “creative”, “witty”, “colorful”, “genius” (…Did I go too far with “Genius”??….) …. any way – you get what I’m saying…. It takes some creativity to write these posts and it’s difficult to do that during the hustle and bustle of the daily grind… so I do them largely away from the office,… where I can let my creative juices flow!!
So lets get down to it and answer the “Question” …. "Don't you have anything better to do with your time?"…. Well, quite simply folks, the answer is unequivocally…."No"...
Let me explain ...See, these posts do something more than just "being silly" - sure they make you laugh- but they do something more important... They make us laugh...TOGETHER... These posts bring "us" - The Naugatuck Police Department and our citizens...our community...closer together in communication, in a way that had been difficult at best in the past.
These posts are like the little conversations at the corner store that used to take place between individual citizens and the beat cop years ago...
As time has gone by, people's lives have all become busier, our schedules more hectic…. And police officers jobs during this same time have become more complex, there are more responsibilities placed upon the modern law enforcement officer …not to mention the fact that police officers have largely been removed from the “foot beat” and placed into cruisers so that they can cover more ground quicker and more efficiently... but all of this has taken away from our communication with our citizens … and certainly has greatly reduced the opportunities for “corner store conversations” to occur. ….But - with social media, it really makes it possible again ... just in a slightly different format… and in a slightly different way in that the conversation now takes place with hundreds of us at the same time...
…Now, of course our post vary... we put out many serious – “straight to the point” posts as there are times we are dealing with subject matter that is not light hearted, other times our posts are funny and silly, they involve a lighter side of policing ... and this is done purposely as I always found that police social network pages were often very dry and boring... so I make them more like a conversation I would have with my friends and family... and it seems to be working -our posts have been very well received and our Facebook page continues to grow - We are proud to say that we have one of the most popular Police Facebook pages in the state (thank you everyone!!)
….With all of this said - I can think of no more important function for a police agency to have then to effectively communicate with its citizens… and if we make you laugh along the way – so be it, all the better!! … So the next time you see a silly - funny post from us or a video containing a large rubber duck … remember …. It is not “wasted time”… It is very much the opposite; it is extremely important time that is in our opinion extremely valuable time and is time very well spent!!
Thank you everyone – please have a great weekend and remember, as always, we will be here if you need us!!!