Princeton Police Twitter Gains a Following

It started as a public relations move. 

But over the past year, the Princeton Township Police Department's Twitter has gained a loyal following for its timely posts about accidents around town, photos from the Memorial Day Parade, the bike rodeo, and yes, even bear sightings. 

It's about getting information out to residents in a timely manner, said Police Sgt. Mike Cifelli, the department's public information officer who is responsible for the police "tweets." 

Because Twitter only allows 140 characters per post, the messages are short and sweet: "Rt 206 is closed between Herontown Rd. and Ewing St. due to a jack-knifed tractor-trailer. Traffic is being detoured onto Mt. Lucas Rd."

The department's first tweet was on May 20, 2011, its first foray into the world of social media. Cifelli said.

"Public perception of the police department was not favorable at the time so we wanted to be more transparent in terms of the information we were getting out there," he said, referring to the late 2010 takeover the department by the Mercer County Proscecutor's Office and subsequent departures of Chief Mark Emann, Lt. Michael Henderson and Cpl. Arthur Villaruz for allegedly selling Township property.

Today, the department has 396 Twitter followers. On Facebook, which the department also launched last year, the department has 430 fans.

Cifelli admits the department's social media efforts aren't perfect yet, as he can only devote six hours a week to his public information duties.

"If I'm not here or I'm working on a project, we can't get everything that comes in," he said, adding that the department is working on a more consistent schedule of relaying information going forward.  

How do you think the police department is doing with social media?