INTRODUCTION
The article social media: Establish criteria for law enforcement use is published by Robert D. Stuart, M.S. Social media availability has become vast thus can be found in law enforcement. It has affected several officers and departments in both negative and positive ways. Its misuse can lead to contradictory events like endangering an officer’s safety, violation of criminal case privacy, and civil and criminal justice liability exposure. Familiarization of the social media loopholes by the law enforcement agency affecting the officers can help to deal with the risks. Knowing the types, benefits and complications created by social media, then creating a model to control their usage by the law enforcement officers. Training personnel and the creation of policies can help accomplish the regulations. Using all policies methods available on social media as a law enforcement tool can help departments serve the public better.
Law enforcement officers and social media regulations are the central ideology of this article. It gives us a theory between the related law enforcement officers and social media and how they affect each other either positively or negatively depending on how the two are used about the general public. A better understanding of the two can give a clearer idea of the two fields’ operations.
In the article ‘social media: establishing criteria for law enforcement ‘, the author has given a clearer expiation of the two. In the first paragraph, he has created a general idea about how the two systems relate and what effects come after depending on the usage of each field relative to the other. The author’s unstated premise talks about the regulation of law enforcement officers in the use of social media .an evaluation of the author’s claim arguments, and the conclusion is presented below for better scrutiny.
The author gives a clear definition of the media as a mode of communication to many individuals to cause influence while social entails a two-way communication through a media source to initiate interaction which is correct according to Willis, C. (2003). Social networking is a form of social media that allows multiple individuals to share information; an example is Facebook and Twitter.
A few examples have been outlined to clarify what social media is, what it entails and how it works. This provides premises that give a better understanding of what one is dealing with. The author explains how social media can be applied or utilized by law enforcement agencies and how it can thrive through the exploitation of social media for public relations, law-breaking evasion, and criminal analysis. The departments’ creation of social media sites creates a new opportunity to contact the public, facilitating real-time communication and easy access to information from the public that may aid in investigations. Criminals can share information using social media about their plans, locations and valuable information to ease apprehension.
The author provides a claim on the complications or problems faced when officers use social media and provides rigorous evidence to support his claim, as quoted below in the example. Officers should be aware of the consequences of social media linkage with personal life. Merging private and public lives with their professional ones can cause disgrace to the individual and their departments. Leakage of unsuitable may cause unintended attention from the media and other individuals. This is a quote example from the source, social media: establishing criteria for law enforcement use is published by Robert D. Stuart, M. S”. In one case, a Texas defense lawyer discovered the arresting officer’s Myspace profile. The post described the cop as a “superhero/serial murderer” and contained graphic images of women with skin carvings. The officer used excessive force on his client, according to the defense counsel.”
The author comes up with solutions on how the two fields can be used without affecting each other negatively rather than positively complementing each other. A few phrases have been used to support his argument, like law enforcement agencies can model a method that governs social media usage to balance officers’ constitutional rights while guarding the integrity of departments and investigations. The instances and samples provided show how the author thinks they can create a solution to solve the issue.
Refraining officers from using social media and occurrence on the Internet is complicated. Government has the power to confine the speech of their personnel depending on the situation, such as if the expression affects the operation or ruins the reputation of the department or agency. Social media policy should publicly describe the distinction between secure free speech and the revelation that might impact departments or personnel. Agencies may oversee officers’ social media conduct if they designate law enforcement as a profession or distribute law enforcement-related information. The heads should control behavior and information.
The author concludes that Administrators of law enforcement must create relevant regulations on the use of social media to improve benefits for their departments and decrease instances of abuse by personnel. Training personnel and the creation of policies can help accomplish the regulations. Using all policies methods available on social media as a law enforcement tool can help departments serve the public better.
The author provides a substantial claim or argument from the article that he provides enough evidence and circumstances that back up his claim, proving his claim’s validity and providing a better understanding of the situation using backed-up information. The author also provides a solution or recommendation for dealing with the situation.
References
Bowman, S., & Willis, C. (2003). We media. How audiences are shaping the future of news and information, 66.
https://leb.fbi.gov/articles/featured-articles/social-media-establishing-criteria-for-law-enforcement-use. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-englishcomposition1/chapter/text-diagramming-and-evaluating-arguments.
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