November 7, 2011

Mayor Emanuel Launches First Official Mayor's Office Google+ Page

New technologies allow for greater connectivity between the public and the Mayor’s Office

Mayor's Press Office    312.744.3334

Reinforcing a commitment to new technologies and social media engagement, Mayor Emanuel today launched the Chicago Mayor’s Office Google+ Page, hours after Google opened up the social networking platform to organizations and brands. (Link to page: http://goo.gl/LJdJb)

“This is an exciting new way for us to continue an open, public dialogue with Chicagoans and the 40 million people using Google+,” said Mayor Emanuel. “We will continue to search for new, innovative ways for the public to stay connected and hold government accountable.”

Since taking office, Mayor Emanuel has leveraged social media to better connect with the public. The Mayor’s Office Google+ Page facilitates a two-directional sharing of information and will be a platform for public conversations. This new social media tool compliments existing efforts including:

  • ChicagoBudget.org, the first interactive budget website. People across Chicago can engage in the City’s budget process. To date, more than 10,000 ideas and comments for addressing the City’s challenges have been posted, generating over 62,000 votes from 3,100 people.
  • Windy City Badge and Chicago’s Mayor on Foursquare. Chicago is the world’s first city with its own foursquare City badge, the “Windy City” City badge. The public can see what the Mayor is doing in neighborhoods across the city at Foursquare.com/ChicagosMayor.
  • Chicago’s first Facebook Town Hall #AskChicago. On June 30, Mayor Emanuel was the first sitting mayor of a major city to hold a live online chat in which questions were submitted and ranked by the public. The Mayor has committed to hosting similar forums in the future.
  • @ChicagosMayor on Twitter. Mayor Emanuel is the first Chicago Mayor to leverage Twitter to connect with the public, answer questions and share news.

 

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