Editorial: Plenty to 'like' about new media

Social media is a new weapon for police to wield. Photo / File

Batman had a utility belt, Superman had superhuman strength and now it appears the police's best weapon to fight crime is social media.

I read with interest the article in Saturday's Rotorua Daily Post, about more than 200 wanted Rotorua suspects on the run, dozens of whom face serious violence, sexual offending or dishonesty charges.

While this fact was disturbing in itself, it was interesting to see police using social media to help put some of these criminals behind bars.

Rotorua police said social media had made a big difference in tracking down wanted criminals or people with outstanding warrants. Police said they had also received tip-offs through messages from their Facebook page.

It turns out the Boys in Blue have 29 Facebook pages, 10 Twitter accounts, two You Tube channels and a commissioner's blog.

To show how effective this tool is to police - recently, two men wanted for a rural burglary were caught after closed-circuit television footage was shared on the Facebook page. One of the men was arrested four hours after his photo was published.

Proudly, even our weekly Wanted section of the Rotorua Daily Post's 111 Files on a Wednesday also proves handy to deter those on the run from the law.

Love them or hate them, social media sites are an important part of how people connect in this modern age and our police have embraced the new technology and have made it work to their advantage.

Sure Facebook, Twitter or You Tube aren't as sexy as being faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, or able to jump tall buildings in a single bound but it appears to be just as effective. I just wonder how the Batmobile would look in blue and white with 'Police' painted on the side?