Last week, we learned that the United States Marine Corps had banned the use of social media sites by its active members. Today, some new information has come to light about how another branch of the US military – the Air Force – uses social media websites.
Specifically, the AP reports on a special unit of the Air Force called Combat Information Cell that could best be thought of as a brand monitoring team within the organization. That unit became especially important back in April, when the Air Force used Air Force One in an ill-advised flyover of Manhattan in the name of a good photo opp.
The group, which analyzes Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other social media sites, rightly concluded that “no positive spin was possible” and that "blogs will continue to be overwhelmingly negative" regarding the Air Force One flyover. More interesting, however, is that the Air Force also tracked the blame game so to speak, noting in a report that criticism in social media and on blogs had shifted towards The White House within a few days of the event.
In other documents released to the AP through FOIA, a unit of the Air Force comments on the insane amount of hype being generated by swine flu on social media sites, and how it could be an opportunity for the organization to shape public perception of government readiness.