Normalisation of crisis communication in post-crisis times: Examining the Facebook page of Hong Kong police force during and after radical protests

Abstract

Despite the extensive research on police use of social media for crisis communication, their post-crisis social media activity warrants further exploration. This paper analyses 4,177 posts from the Hong Kong Police Force’s (HKPF) Facebook page from June 2018 to May 2021, covering periods before, during, and after the wave of violent protests in 2019. The study found that, during the protest movement, the HKPF’s social media agenda underwent a significant shift – from serving as a public relations tool to creating an image of a crime-fighting force. This agenda persisted post-crisis, with the police demonstrating increased activity on social media during this period. At the same time, the police made efforts to restore a degree of friendly tone after the movement. The research suggests that, despite the general tendency to restore legitimacy following civil unrest, such a crisis can impact the police’s perception of their relationship with citizens. Instead of reverting their social media strategy to its pre-crisis state, the crisis-era strategy could become normalised in post-crisis times. The findings of this research provide insight into how civil unrest can affect the police – citizen relationship and how the government’s reaction to the crisis can shape the police’s public relations strategy in the aftermath.