Government websites and social media's influence on government-public relationships

• Published in: Public relations review Vol. 39; no. 4; pp. 346 - 356
• Main Author: Hong, Hyehyun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Silver Spring Elsevier Inc 01.11.2013; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Communication channels; Government agencies; Government websites; Government-public relationship; Public relations; Public trust in government; Social media; Social networks; Studies; Websites; United States > US; Government-public relationship; Social media; Government websites; Public trust in government
• ISSN: 0363-8111; 1873-4537
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.07.007

•The successful use of government websites increased the level of trust in government.•The use of informational services was related to greater trust in the local/state government.•The use of transactional services was related to greater trust in the federal government.•The use of social media was related to greater trust in the local/state government. Recent years have witnessed the increasing use of online media, such as websites, blogs, and social networking sites, by the government for various public relations purposes. These government communication channels are often regarded to promote democratic values and public trust in government by helping the government provide the public with information and respond to citizen inquires. Further, such channels help the public provide the government with feedback. This study questions whether individuals’ experience with government websites and social media do, in fact, influence their perception of the government-public relationship (represented by public trust in government). The results, which are based on a nationwide survey of more than 2000 American citizens, showed support for a positive relationship between this online experience and public trust in government. In particular, experiences with informational online services and social media were associated with greater trust in government at the local and state levels, while those with transactional online services conveyed greater trust in the federal government. However, successful experience with the channels was more important than the experience itself, and an unsuccessful experience could even backfire in terms of trust in government.