Treasury Board President Tony Clement stands in the House of Commons during Question Period on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa Monday February 13, 2012.Clement may be king of social media in political circles on Parliament Hill, but he didn't get to be mayor of his own Twitter town hall.During an online chat on the subject of open government, the Treasury Board president, who is a prolific tweeter, had a ghostwriter doing most of the work for him. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Chartrand
September 23, 2012 - 10:39 AM
OTTAWA - Tony Clement may be king of social media in political circles on Parliament Hill, but he didn't get to be mayor of his own Twitter town hall.
During an online chat last year on the subject of open government, the Treasury Board president had a ghostwriter doing most of the work for him.
His staff also prepared more than 40 tweets ahead of time so they could be copied and pasted in response to questions.
The 90-minute event took three dry runs to set up and involved at least six staff, including "subject matter experts" to help answer questions.
The analysis on the town hall was obtained by The Canadian Press under Access to Information legislation.
It highlights the struggle facing MPs seeking to use social media tools in a world of tightly controlled communications.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012