Since September 2011, the police have used Twitter, later called X, to provide updates on events from the police’s operations centres. The police were sometimes praised for their use of Twitter, but also accused of sometimes going over the line. Eventually, they had to create internal rules for how they should behave on the platform. This message caused reactions when it was published in 2017. But now it’s over. The police are replacing X with their own app, “politiloggen”, which has been available since 24 June. The police have also tried using lyrical means. Photo: Screenshot from Twitter Brushing the teeth with baking powder Operations manager, Karl Erik Thomassen, sits at the operations center in the Troms police district on Wednesday. For the first time in 13 years, he will not post messages on X. – It is a planned process where the police take ownership of our own data, and do not give it to a commercial third party. It is important to us that information coming from the police can be verified, and that the population can be confident that the information comes from the police, he says. According to Thomassen, those in Troms have mostly tried to remain professional and sober. – But exceptionally, there may have been a hint of twinkle in the eye and humor in the messages. But that is exceptional, he points out. Operations manager Karl Erik Thomassen in the Troms police district says they have tried to remain professional and sober at X, but points out that there have been exceptions. Photo: Tove Jensen / news An example of a twinkle in the eye was earlier this summer when a person blew red in a blood alcohol test. – The person stated that he had brushed his teeth with baking powder. Why on earth the person in question brushed his teeth with baking powder is not known for sure, but it is believed to be an old woman’s advice for whiter teeth, Troms police district wrote on X. – In any case, it is beyond any doubt that baking powder, which normally raises baking, in this case raised the eyebrows of police officers. How often police officers discover strange reasons for suspicious behavior is not known, but occasionally they share it with the public. Photo: Skjermdump Messages were published as a book A police district that has tried its hand at humor a little more often can be found further south in the country. In 2014, the funniest messages from the operations center at the Police House in Oslo, which then had 118,000 followers, were published in book form. Whether the humor will make it over to the police’s own app remains to be seen. The police received a lot of attention for this tweet from January 1, 2017. It was named tweet of the year during Social Media Days that year. But many were critical of the humorous tone. The picture is a collage put together of the Oslo police’s background on Twitter, and the tweet in question. According to section leader Torgeir Haugen in the Norwegian Police Directorate, 96,000 have already downloaded the “police log”, where people can choose which police districts and municipalities they want updates from. – It is important that police operational information becomes available to everyone – without citizens having to create an account or give up personal data to get this information, he says. More controversies After Elon Musk bought Twitter in 2022, there have been more controversies surrounding the rules and guidelines of the platform. Journalists have been banned, and major investors have withdrawn due to the spread of unwanted content. In June 2023, Elon Musk announced restrictions on the app, which meant that non-paying users could not read more than 1,000 messages. It was referred to as a major problem for public agencies that used the app to disseminate information to the public, among others by Kristine Foss in the Norwegian Press Association. – In the absence of anything else, Twitter (now X) was chosen. All the operations centers in the police districts use Twitter to inform about what is happening, said communications director Hilde Ebeltoft-Skaugrud in the Norwegian Police Directorate to NTB in July last year. Earlier this autumn, Musk announced that they will change the blocking function on X, which critics believe will weaken the security of users. Now no police district will be on X anymore, and thus will not have to comply with their guidelines or restrictions. Published 23.10.2024, at 09.40 Updated 23.10.2024, at 10.49
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Now the police have finished at X – news Troms and Finnmark
