Brimfield police department gains popularity through Facebook

BRIMFIELD, OH—Brimfield Township is a small, quaint town right outside of Kent. Nevertheless, Brimfield Police has made its name known to many through the use of Facebook.

There are around 3,500 people living in Brimfield; however, Brimfield’s Police Department Facebook page has over 84,000 likes. So, what is the big deal?

Captain Christopher Adkins of Brimfield Police Department seems to think that it was ripple effect that caused the explosion of popularity. “The page has gained popularity because the effect of social media. People see something they like and they end up staying involved with the page…it did what what social-networking is supposed to do” said Adkins.

Social media has made a major turn in how people get their information. No longer are people only reading the newspaper or watching television to get their information, but now people are turning to social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter to stay up-to-date with information.

On the top of Brimfield Police Dept. Facebook page, you will find a banner picture with the words “Brimfield Police Department: Courage, Integrity, Community” and four k-9 dogs on the lower left of the picture. It seems to have made a positive mark with many viewers— except for a few. One person commented “love the dogs, what a welcome for all the mopes. Keep the lights on….they are coming!”

On the rest of the page, there are statuses of traffic updates, crime, personal messages from Chief David Oliver, pictures of police officers, and other information. The updates are consistent with someone updating multiple times a day.

“Chief Oliver primarily maintains the site, that’s his baby” states Captain Adkins of Brimfield Police.

One would have to think, has this made a positive impact on the community? Captain Adkins seems to think so, “we have always had a good standing with the community, but since establishing the Facebook account, we have gained a better relationship with the community”.

From viewing the site, this might be a true statement. There is a dialogue between officers and the public that has created an interesting relationship between officers and the people within and outside the community.

Not only are those in and outside the community gaining information directly from the police department, but news reporters are also finding information easier than they have before.

“Many of those working on stories come to our Facebook page to find newsworthy topics, instead of just coming into the station and asking questions” said Captain Adkins.

This seems great for those working on deadline and need to create a story fast; however, does this further create a disconnect between reporters and police officers?

On one hand, you have the public that gets to interact with police officers and ask questions that they might not have been able to ask before. Not only that, Brimfield P.D. does not only update statuses on crime, but also things that are going on in the community.

“People get to know where their tax dollars are going” states Captain Adkins. This has created transparency with the community and police officers.

However, on the other hand, news reporters are getting a lot of their information from the social media site, which is great, but could create a disconnect between reporters and police officers.

If reporters are getting most of their information from Facebook, instead of talking to someone directly at the department, misinformation and biased information can arise. At this point, this is only hypothetical; nevertheless, it is something to think about.  Nevertheless, it seems to be going well.

Brimfield Police Department Facebook page has caused beneficial factors to not only the police force, but the Brimfield community and outside communities.

Clearly this has worked well for Brimfield P.D. being that they have more likes on Facebook than people living in Brimfield and Kent combined.  This what the information age looks like.