The Swiss government has been represented on the social platform since the beginning of this week with a joint Instagram profile. There is great interest in the new profile with the somewhat cryptic name “gov.ch”. The account now has more than 45,000 followers.
But after less than a week, it became clear that the Federal Council is not immune to hate comments on the social platform. “When will the 7 Pointy Caps finally step down?” someone writes below a short video. There are also hateful comments about the government flying to Grisons to meet with supercougars.
Criticism also from politics
The government allows unfriendly comments under the photos and does not rigorously remove posts from angry citizens. “The authorities must guarantee freedom of expression in everything they do,” media spokesman Urs Bruderer told nau.ch. Therefore, “provocative, shocking or disturbing statements” would also be protected.
According to Bruderer, the Instagram officials only want to intervene if there is a criminal offense. The fact that the Federal Council wants to create ten new positions, which are intended, among other things, to fill the Federal Council’s Instagram channel with photos and videos, has also caused a lot of criticism among the photos.
Six of these vacancies have already been filled. The Insta officials are also responsible for other internet activities. They are part of the «social media strategy». With this, the government wants to modernize its communication.
However, civic politicians such as SVP National Councilor Diana Gutjahr (39) have already criticized the Instagram strategy. She thinks ten positions is too many.
This is how the Federal Council wants to address young people
The Federal Council wants to address the population directly via Instagram, especially the 15 to 30-year-olds, a population group that is mainly active on the online channels. The aim is to reach those who hardly read the newspaper or watch TV. (you)