UK Ministers about to launch social media review

Having covered what some in the gaming industry believe to be lack of interest in new media in the Scottish Parliament, I was reminded of a story I spotted this weekend about political colleagues in Westminster setting up a two-month review of how they can use new technology to better communicate with their constituents (Ministers wake to potential of people power on the net)

So taken aback with the power of the blogosphere and online communities such as MySociety, the Cabinet Office, no less, is setting up a varied group of individuals to see how they can harness this better, and pay attention to what the blogosphere notices and suggests. Good news is that MySociety's Tom Steinberg is on the team. It's not just that those who write blogs carry influence, but that a whole host of technology is allowing people to be more productive, talk about what they like and don't like and, thus, root out uncompetitive or just not very good products and services - including those run by Government agencies.

If ever Local Authorities are looking for a lead in helping educators and learners get the most out of social media this is it. If they don't start empowering their own constituents in the same way as East Lothian has, for example, by offering stable online communities which anyone there can become a part of, then they will pay the price further down the line as a new power base develops. More importantly, they've got to be reading and listening to what their constituents are saying and be taking that seriously.

Politicians, with their relatively small life-cycle, might get this quicker, but the civil servants clearly have no choice but to catch up.
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