ATTORNEY General Faris Al-Rawi's social media outing on Tuesday was a small step in the right direction when it comes to Government's communications strategy.
Mr Al-Rawi, alongside Minister of Communications Symon de Nobriga, participated in a live audio room on Twitter hosted by multimedia journalist Kejan Haynes to discuss the state of emergency.
The live audio room, or 'space,' drew many listeners. When it ended, Mr Al-Rawi, who has more than 5,000 followers on Twitter, posted, 'I am humbled by the turnout tonight on #TwitterSpaces as we reached over 3,500 people. I look forward to continued dialogue with you.'
While the AG has been rightly praised for agreeing to this encounter, the novelty of Tuesday's event highlights that there is a lot of room for improvement when it comes to state entities' use of social media.
What was refreshing was the semblance of accessibility the event afforded.
But what the population also needs is openness when it comes to government more generally, not just the opportunity to speak with figureheads or officials every now and then.
And communication works both ways.
Whether we will see a repeat of Tuesday will depend on whether politicians are pressed to answer hard questions or allowed to carry out a suave and practised charm offensive from start to end, as Mr Al-Rawi did.
The current public health crisis has also been a reminder that effective communication, which can appear effortless, is actually difficult to master. But it is crucial now, during a state of emergency which imposes restrictions on the population, with significant penalties for failing to observe them.
In addition, the only way out of the pandemic is through vaccines, about which many people have heard more misinformation than fact. Reducing vaccine hesitancy is vital.
It is worth repeating that the Government's communications strategy has often been out of touch.
It has failed to break down, parse and disseminate information through varied and accessible channels. It has painted everyone with one brush, not recognising different sectors have different needs, and different people listen to different things and learn in different ways. It has treated any rule-breakers as acting with bad mind, when they may simply be bewildered by or unaware of the current regulations or why they must be followed precisely.
Another obstacle to getting the message across is that while both Government and Opposition are expert at using local parlance and generating soundbites, their otherwise long-winded and convoluted speaking styles have become outmoded, especially to the meme generation.
Timely, bite-sized, easily accessible information should be available in all aspects of the State's communications strategy, even for complex issues. Using social media is not just about having a social media presence. It's also about the message itself.
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