County View: PIO's first objective: get to know Boone County

by Porsche Moran

June 26,2009

Porsche Moran is a December 2008 graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism. She can be reached at pmoran@boonecountymo.org.

In April, Boone County hired me as the county’s first-ever public information officer. My job is to provide information about the county to the media and the public. I see myself as an in-house reporter for the county, which is a good match with my background in magazine journalism. The job of PIO can be overwhelming, but for the most part it is an amazing opportunity.

Over the last two months, I have focused on four main objectives. First, is getting to know the county. I attend as many county meetings as possible to keep up with county issues and hear public comments. I have also been touring the county’s many facilities to find out about programs and events of which the public should be aware.

Second, I have worked to assess the media, county officials and the public’s information needs. Another objective is to figure out my role as the PIO. It is challenging to create a new position, so I have been doing research on how other counties keep their citizens informed as well as meeting with other PIOs in the community to ask questions and exchange ideas.

A further goal – and one that I am very excited about – is to improve and expand the county’s online communication. At a recent meeting, I gave a presentation to elected officials and department heads about the value of government bodies using social media to communicate and interact with citizens. We discussed keeping citizens engaged and educated through a blog and establishing a county presence on Web sites, such as Facebook, Youtube and Twitter.

Other counties and government entities around the world are using these tools and finding great success. I am convinced that the citizens of Boone County will embrace these new forms of communication and use them to not only learn more about how their local government works but to also become more involved.

One of the greatest benefits of using social media is that it will allow us to interact with and serve citizens in ways we haven’t been able to before. In the future, I envision being able to do things such as hold online Q&A sessions with elected officials, announce road closings via text message and provide updates on long-term county projects through blog posts. The possibilities are endless, and I am ready to explore any option that will make information more readily available.

Although we are still figuring out how to best use these new tools, I am pleased with the improvements that we have already made in communicating with the public in the short time since I have been here. On the county Website, we have added a press room to provide the media and the public with 24 hour access to our news releases and photos. Anyone can subscribe to our Real Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, which will deliver news on the County topics that most interest you to your e-mail or RSS reader as soon as it is posted online.

The Web site’s homepage has also been consolidated to make it easier for visitors to find out about county services and view current job openings. The overall goal of every change is to make it easier for citizens to find information and to give everyone a better understanding of why and how things happen in the county.

Of course, public feedback is essential on my new job. Please let me know what questions you have about Boone County and how you want your news and information delivered to you by taking our web survey at www.showmeboone.com.