Police Union and Police Association Communications on Social Media and Legitimacy Spillover in Canada

• Author: Nathan Isaak,Kevin Walby
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/10575677221082070
• Published date: 01 September 2022
• Date: 01 September 2022
• Subject Matter: Original Articles

Police Union and Police

Association Communications

on Social Media and Legitimacy

Spillover in Canada

Nathan Isaak and Kevin Walby

Abstract

Although literature on police use of social media is expanding, almost all previous research has

focused on police services. Existing literature has not examined the social media communications

of multi-jurisdictional police unions and other associations. Unions represent police members dur-

ing collective bargaining. Multi-jurisdictional police associations represent a specif‌ic issue or demo-

graphic within policing. We examine Twitter use by multi-jurisdictional police unions and

associations in Canada. Although we demonstrate that there is variatio n by type of organization,

we nevertheless contend the central aim of these union and associations communications is to pro-

vide horizontal legitimacy spillover, legitimizing not only police off‌icers across Canada but the police

institution itself. In conclusion, we ref‌lect on what these f‌indings mean for literatures on police

social media communications and police unions and associations.

Keywords

Police associations, police unions, social media, communications, legitimacy

Introduction

Public police use social media for everything from emergency alerts to public relations manage-

ment (Van de Velde et al., 2014; Procter et al., 2013). They also curate images and rhetoric to foster

positive representations of police in the social media landscape, meaning that police social media

communications are a form of image management (Wood, 2020; Ellis, 2019; Bullock, 2018).

Police respond to social and political issues on social media in ways that deserve academic

inquiry because these communications can shape criminal justice responses and public views of

criminal justice institutions.

To date, most literature on police social media use has focused on police services. This literature

has not examined the online communications of multi-jurisdictional police unions and associations.

Department of Criminal Justice, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Corresponding Author:

Kevin Walby, Department of Criminal Justice, University of Winnipeg, Centennial Hall, 3rd Floor, 515 Portage Avenue,

Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9, Canada.

Email: k.walby@uwinnipeg.ca

Original Article

International Criminal Justice Review

2022, Vol. 32(3) 328-345

© 2022 Georgia State University

Article reuse guidelines:

sagepub.com/journals-permissions

DOI: 10.1177/10575677221082070

journals.sagepub.com/home/icj

We examine Twitter use by Canadian multi-jurisdictional police unions and associations. In Canada

and in other countries, police unions are often called associations (e.g., Toronto Police Association).

These unions represent police members during collective bargaining (Berry et al., 2008; Fleming

et al., 2006; Finnane, 2000) and are involved in municipal or local politics. However, there are enti-

ties that span jurisdictions often referred to as police associations that represent the voice of police

from more than one police service or agency. For example, Black police associations represent the

interests of Black police off‌icers from multiple police services (O’Neill & Holdaway, 2007). These

multi-jurisdictional police associations represent a particular issue or demographic within policing.

These police networks are akin to lobby groups that represent the interests of police on a state, pro-

vincial, regional, or federal level (Savage et al., 1996). We focus on a sample of both types of orga-

nizations to assess how they communicate using social media. It is important to examine the social

media use of these organizations because they are often explicitly political at the municipal, provin-

cial, state and federal levels of government. Additionally, little is known about the social media use of

such organizations in Canada or elsewhere. To examine issues of police image management and

legitimacy, our analysis investigates the frequency and content of messaging from a sample of

these organizations from across Canada. Examining these communications contributes to literature

on police image management on social media as well as literature on police associations and

unions. Moreover, we offer a typology of police association social media communications that

adds to literature on police social media use (Crump, 2011).

First, we review the literature on police communications, police social media use, and police legit-

imacy. Second, we provide a note on our research methods. Third, we offer our f‌indings. We f‌ind that

while there is variation by type of organization, the primary intent of these online communications is

to enhance police legitimacy among the public as well as boost morale and solidarity among off‌icers.

Based on these f‌indings, we argue these social media communications provide horizontal legitimacy

spillover (Wood, 2020), legitimizing not only police off‌icers across Canada but the police institution.

Finally, we ref‌lect on what our f‌indings mean for literature on police social media use and police

image management.

Literature Review and Conceptual Framework

Police social media use ref‌lects a mix of crime-related and public relations-oriented messaging

(Walby & Wilkinson, 2022; Van de Velde et al., 2014; Procter et al., 2013; Lieberman et al., 2013).

To make sense of this variation, Crump (2011) provides a typology of police social media users includ-

ing broadcasters (trying to reach as many as possible), knowledge gatherers (monitoring the police

prof‌ile but also conducting surveillance), and community facilitators (networking) (also see Meijer

& Thaens, 2013). Adding to this view, Hu et al. (2018) draw from literature on policing styles to

make sense of police social media use in the United States. They f‌ind some police services are more

crime focused in social media use, whereas others are more focused on local neighbo rhood relations

(also see Hu & Lovrich, 2019). Wood (2020) examines the use of memes by public police on social

media, f‌inding that police use humor and images of animals to expand their list of followers and to

make more affective connections with the public. In Canada, literature to date has similarly observed

that police use multiple strategies on Twitter and other social media sites to curate their image and to

manage public views of police work (Walby & Joshua, 2021; Walby & Gumieny, 2020; O’Connor,

2017; Schneider, 2016). Public police communicate and create their own images online in part

because of ongoing tensions with news media (Duncan & Walby, 2022; Ellis & McGovern, 2016).

This variation in social media use raises the question of whether police Twitter and Instagram

communications replicate traditional police culture. De Graaf and Meijer (2019) found that social

media use by police may create contradictions as well as role and value conf‌licts. Although social

media is associated with visualization and transparency, police culture is largely based on secrecy

Isaak and Walby 329