New Government of Canada policies related to social media

Recently the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat released two very important documents, which finally put some meat into the pro-collaboration and engagement statements frequently being made by both the Clerk of the Privy Council as well as the President of the Treasury Board over the last few years.

In the world of TBS issued guidance documents there are frameworks, policies, directives, standards and guidelines (broadest to most specific). The two documents recently released include a policy on Acceptable Network and Device Use and a standard on Social Media Account Management.

A reflection on the reporting of “breaking news” during the Boston Manhunt

There has been more than enough written on the tragic Boston Marathon bombing and the subsequent shoot-out death of one suspect and arrest of the other. I definitely don’t want to be adding to the plethora of opinions out there and emerging law enforcement criticisms and conspiracy theories. The focus of this post is merely to share a few thoughts on how I found myself tracking these events as they were unfolding and how the reporting and consumption of breaking news continues to undergo a massive transformation.

Can a mobile app save lives? Yes it can.

Over the last year I have had the privilege of working with a fair amount of health organizations wishing to enter the digital realm. As a result, I have performed quite a bit of research and literature review on the applicability of social media engagement and mobile technology in the public health field. The opportunities are of course tremendous, and most of the risks can be effectively mitigated through education/training as numerous proactive health organizations have demonstrated to date.