The NYPD is using social media to target critics. That brings its own set of worries
The New York Police Department has been taking a more active role in trying to influence public policy through slick online videos and social media posts
NEW YORK — The first “NYPD: Most Wanted” video was meant to be intimidating.
Over a pounding soundtrack, the montage cuts among stock images and body-camera footage of actual police raids. A fake gun discharges. Real officers break down a door, barking orders at a man asleep on a couch.
As a key turns in a jail cell lock, a New York City police deputy appears on screen to announce the arrest of a teenage suspect — not the person seen in the video moments earlier — in a shooting on a Bronx subway platform.
Produced in-house by the New York Police Department and promoted across its official social media channels, the dramatic two-minute clip reflects a concerted effort by the nation’s largest police force to engage the public and influence policy through a more aggressive online presence.
The strategic shift has brought criticism from former NYPD officials and civil liberties groups who say police leaders shouldn’t use public resources to advance their own policy agenda or attack other civil servants. But the NYPD hasn’t backed down.
“We want to go on social media and push back on the misinformation that’s out there,” Tarik Sheppard, the NYPD’s top spokesperson, said in an interview. “Because if we don’t, it could cause damage to the reputation of our cops and the work that we’re doing.”
In recent months, the department has added production-savvy staff to its communications arm, with plans to release a long-form documentary series later this year.
At the same time, it has encouraged police chiefs to be more vocal on social media, giving them the green light to go after
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