Scott's 375th AMW goes social with Facebook, Twitter presence

Published Aug. 11, 2010
By Karen Petitt
375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Aug. 12 marks the date for the launch of the Facebook page for the 375th Air Mobility Wing Commander, Col. Michael Hornitschek, who took command of the wing June 25.

"My goal is to share with you events and policies from my vantage point as well as facilitate discussions about issues that are important to you," said the colonel. "I realize that some people may feel a reluctance to comment or become a fan of a wing commander's page, but I'm positive that we'll be able to engage with each other in a professional and positive way that encourages feedback and discussion."

His page joins the wing's other official Facebook page titled "Scott Air Force Base," which launched in late May and has been steadily increasing in number of fans and comments. A reflection of current social media trends, the wing's Facebook page has primarily a female audience -- 64 percent are women and most of those women are in the 35-44 age group, followed closely by the 25-34 year age group.

"It seems we are striking a chord with our spouses and family members, and that's exactly why we are working to ensure we have a robust presence on Facebook," said Colonel Hornitschek. "Social media venues such as Facebook allow us to not only reach out to our Airmen, but also to their families and friends. In turn, people are reaching out and communicating with each other, too. That's great to see."

The wing Facebook page is also set up to feed into Twitter as well, so those who prefer an automatic feed via their Smartphone, for example, can receive updates immediately. The wing is also reworking its blog page which will re-launch on the dodlive.mil site later in the month.

When people are looking for the wing's page on Facebook, be sure you're on the page titled "Scott Air Force Base," with the Scott Field Gate image with tulips. There are many other pages that use the "Scott AFB" moniker. Some of those are affiliated with the base and some are not. Users will need to look carefully at what is official. Most Facebook sites that are "official" will state that on the main page and will be an organizational page, as opposed to a personal page.

The 375th AMW Public Affairs staff has the responsibility for managing the official social media sites and a majority of the content. Ms. Bekah Clark, 375th AMW/PA's news operations chief, explained how it's her job to ensure information released to the public is timely, accurate, credible and consistent with Air Force policies and procedures.

"We realize this is a social environment, and a lot of groups and organizations will want to have their own pages -- and many have already started doing so," she said. "We don't want to over-regulate this social media effort, but we do want to help those who are looking at launching their own 'official' Facebook organizational pages or blogs before they do so. If people work with us, we can cross-market the information and pass along a lot of lessons learned when establishing an organizational page."

The main idea though is to let people know the pages exist and to encourage participation.

Colonel Hornitschek said he'd like to hear from all ranks as well as from civilians, tenant units, family members, and community partners.

"Your feedback is important to me and our discussions will be those where you can engage freely," he added. "See you in cyberspace!"