The internet has made it possible for average citizens to plunge into cyberspace and learn the secrets of the Matrix by obtaining information about our local communities that was never available in the past. Until recently, most Federal Way news was from two Federal Way newspapers and Seattle and Tacoma news outlets that focused on Seattle and Tacoma stories.

The modern Matrix of social media, websites and online forums empowers every citizen with an interest in journalism to deliver news to an audience potentially as huge as that of the Seattle Times. Citizen journalists may not be able to deliver the news to a reader’s doorstep but we can do even better! Thanks to the Matrix, activists, community organizers and agents of change can deliver the news to your cell phone and even right to the top of your desk!

The town of Vernon, New Jersey is an interesting example of the powerful potential for change presented by the internet. Vernon’s town government operated like Federal Way did not so long ago under a “council-manager” government. The city council, not the people, elected the mayor.

The result in Vernon was that corruption in Vernon became so bad that the citizens issued a declaration of independence. The solution that led to reform in Vernon’s government was for the people to elect a strong, honest mayor! The change was initiated by a local online newspaper named THE REVERED REVIEW.

Another catalyst for change is social networking media such as Twitter. Chris Carrel, the Communications Coordinator for our Federal Way government, recently told me that social media is an incredibly interesting area to explore because of the opportunity for 2-way communication. The City is cautiously moving forward with a plan to interact with Federal Way residents by launching a Facebook page and Twitter stream that Mr. Carrel will manage for the City.

Chris told me that the project is a 1-year pilot project, with an eye towards measuring the City’s ability to build an audience and the effectiveness of the new tools in communicating with the public. City departments will forward messages, news and photos to Chris to post or tweet. The Community Center will have also have a sub-page on Facebook. Other departments have the option during the pilot period to undertake their own Facebook page or Twitter stream.

Just as in Matrix- the movie- the Social Media Matrix contains the potential for creating destructive phenomenon like the flash mobs now being utilized for robbery, looting and to foment chaos. It has become critical for law enforcement to understand the potential of social media for enabling criminal activity like we saw in London. But it is also critical for law enforcement to understand how to utilize social media proactively to prevent violence.

Federal Way Police Department may want to consider the option of utilizing social media for 2-way communication with the community. During the London riots that spread to other English towns and cities, the police utilized Twitter and other social media to follow up on rumors and prevent the rampant speculation that occurs when whole neighborhoods are burned and homes and shops invaded by gangs of thugs.

According to Mark Payne, a Superintendent with the West Midlands Police, England’s TV channels were publishing banner headlines directly from his tweets. The Superintendant stated that he gained 5000 extra followers within 24 hours after the riots started. Payne provided advice worth passing on to the community and especially to the FWPD.

You need to understand what you are doing and develop a follower base so people start to trust your voice on a daily basis and turn to you for information in a crisis. Be brave –the benefits of using social media outweigh the potential pitfalls. One of the benefits of social media is that there are already networks of engaged citizens in Federal Way just waiting to talk to law enforcement.

FWPD can answer the public’s questions and promote established principles of community policing with Twitter and Facebook. Encourage individual officers to engage through social media. Twitter and other social media can add a personal dimension to a local officer that used to be more common when officers always walked their daily beats in the same part of town.

When local government officials and concerned citizens get involved on a local basis, the big media news outlets will also be impacted. Social media can help to reassure people and dispel rumors during emergencies. By sharing news locally, every citizen of Federal Way can now impact our community and the nation- even the world- by engaging in honest communication and dialogue at a local level.