NYC Police Department Attempts Twitter Campaign That Backfires

The New York Police Department took a beating on social media when a Twitter tactic stumbled on Tuesday.

Encouraging Twitter's hundreds of millions of users to use the hashtag "#myNYPD," the Police Department asked people to tweet pictures of themselves with officers, The New York Times reported.

The incendiary tweet, which was written by the department's social media tea, was worded simply enough. "Do you have a photo w/ a member of the NYPD?" the Police Department asked. "Tweet us & tag it #myNYPD. It may be featured on our Facebook."

But while some photos showed people and officers smiling together, many Twitter users jumped on the hashtag to share the worst images of police that they could find online. In some examples, the tweeted photos showed New York City officers holding down a photographer on the pavement, sleeping in uniform on the subway and knocking a bicyclist to the ground during a protest.

The hashtag made it to the top 10 trending hashtags worldwide, fueled by negative images of New York City police.

Department spokeswoman Deputy Chief Kim Y. Royster said in a statement quoted by the Times that New York City police were "creating new ways to communicate effectively with the community" and that Twitter allowed "an open forum for an uncensored exchange" that is "good for our city."

Tuesday's misstep seemed to do little to further the Police Department's efforts to connect with the public through social media, instead bringing to mind famous Twitter fails such as McDonald's "#McDStories" campaign.

Becoming an example for corporations everywhere, McDonalds attempted to connect with people using that hashtag in 2012, but users instead picked up "#McDStories" to bash the restaurant chain, Forbes reported.

Last fall, JP Morgan Chase nearly had a similar fiasco when the largest bank in the country tried to conduct a Q&A with "#AskJPM," a hashtag that inspired both snarky comments and tragic queries about foreclosed homes. The online Q&A was canceled in wake of the tweets, although users continued to flood the hashtag with comments.