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West Lothian Council has built a following of almost 3,000 by being the first local authority in Scotland to bring in WhatsApp Channels for news and information.(Image: WSH])<\/p>\nThe channel is one of a range of new media being used by the council\u2019s corporate communications team to reach residents.West Lothian Council has built a following of almost 3,000 by being the first local authority in Scotland to bring in WhatsApp Channels for news and information.(Image: WSH])<\/p>\n
West Lothian Council has built a following of almost 3,000 by being the first local authority in Scotland to bring in WhatsApp Channels for news and information.<\/p>\n
The channel is one of a range of new media being used by the council\u2019s corporate communications team to reach residents.<\/p>\n
The team has also delivered websites and training for 86 schools, delivered 30 videos for council departments and introduced drone filming.<\/p>\n
Councillors professed surprise at the expansion of what traditionally has been seen as the Press Office for the local authority, and praise at the range and reach of the communications team.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: West Lothian school cyber attack ‘obviously worrying’ says councillor<\/a><\/p>\n A spokesman for the team said: \u201cWe understand that we were the first Scottish council to bring in a WhatsApp Channels for news and information.<\/p>\n \u201cWe based it on the success that the Met Office UK has had with their own channel and we were able to create and grow our channel with their assistance. We have an accredited channel (blue tick).<\/p>\n \u201cWe have 2,886 followers and it is increasing. We have now assisted several other Scottish and English councils to establish their own channels.<\/p>\n The spokesperson added: \u201cWe are delighted to be the first council in Scotland, and possibly the whole of the UK, to have a verified WhatsApp channel.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Incredible West Lothian couple share their story of fostering children for almost 20 years<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt provides a new method of communicating important updates to local residents, and an alternative to those who may prefer to receive important information and news without the commentary and discussion that can often occur on other social media networks.\u201d<\/p>\n Social media now dominates Corporate Communications, bringing with it the demands for faster responses. The council\u2019s website has 275,000 visits a month. And this has increased by a fifth as council services have developed.<\/p>\n Facebook remains the single most popular social media platform for the council- more than 60,000 regular users. While it continues to be the most-used social media source overall it only reaches 30% of adults, and other platforms are catching up.<\/p>\n Data collected by the team shows big differences in user groups and age range.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Livingston MP welcomes Ofgem’s energy price cap drop<\/a><\/p>\n For 16-24 year olds, social media is the main source of news, with 82% using this platform. Instagram (41%), YouTube (37%), Facebook (35%), TikTok (33%) and \u2018X\u2019 (27%) comprise the top five news sources used by 16-24-year-olds<\/p>\n Those aged 55 and over rely more heavily on the public sector and television sources, and Facebook (19%) is the only social media source in the top ten sources for this group<\/p>\n Only half of 16-24s (49%) use TV for news. In contrast, TV news (including on-demand) is the main news platform used by 85% of people aged 55+<\/p>\n For 12-15s – more interested in lighter news (not politics\/current affairs). BBC is most popular for this age group (36%), then TikTok (30%), YouTube (27%) and Facebook \/ Instagram (both 21%)<\/p>\n The question of trust also brought some interesting responses, according to a presentation to councillors.<\/p>\n READ MORE: West Lothian drivers warned of upcoming closure on carriageway of M9<\/a><\/p>\n Television, radio and print continue to be rated highly on attributes such as accuracy, trust and impartiality – among users of social media, accuracy, trust, impartiality and high quality are rated lower.<\/p>\n Although online and social media have increased in use, traditional platforms significantly outperform them on a number of attribute ratings; in particular, trust, accuracy and impartiality.<\/p>\n Data showed that while younger people (aged 16-24) are the heaviest users of social media for news, they score it below average for accuracy, trustworthiness and impartiality<\/p>\n Of the social media brands, Facebook is the poorest rated social media brand across attributes such as quality, accuracy, and trustworthiness.<\/p>\n