Debate: Should there be rules governing social media use for accountability in the public sector?

Many public service organizations (PSOs) now use social media to communicate what they are doing in order to obtain legitimacy and to increase citizen participation or, at least, to create a direct and cheap channel to engage with citizens. Public participation is vital for effective democratic governance (Teorell, 2006). PSOs must meet the needs of the public (Fung 2004), yet recent studies have shown a persistent decrease in citizen participation. At the same time, in accordance with legitimacy theory, social media allows PSOs to communicate information showing how the PSO is performing in line with the values and expectations of society.