Air Force Reserve Facebook fanpage invites Airmen to engage online

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Ann Knabe
  • AFRC feature
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Airmen now have another conduit to connect within the Air Force Reserve Command. More than 600 facebook users have already become "fans" of AFRC at http://bit.ly/AFRC-Fan .

The official fan page site features informal postings from AFRC, video posts and photos. Fans can add comments to the page. Membership isn't limited to drilling Reservists. Anyone interested in following the Air Force Reserve can sign up. Air Force Reserve "fans" include drilling Reservists, family and friends, and people who are simply curious and interested in the AFR.

"Our fan page is about engagement and community-building," said Lt. Col. Les Pratt, AFRC director of public affairs. "It's one more way to get out our command message, build conversation and learn from Airmen what's on their mind. That's why we hope people start to engage in conversation online and learn from each other. Facebook comments are also a quick way to get feedback from the field. People will write about things that are important to them."

While AFRC's Facebook fan page comments are moderated, they are not censored unless they are defamatory in nature.

Colonel Pratt called the fan page an open forum and encourages people to engage in communication using common sense.

"Consider our fan page a family friendly site, so Reservists need to keep their comments and wall posts clean," he said. "If people don't comply, their messages will be removed."

The AFRC fan page does not allow graphic, obscene, explicit or racial comments or submissions, nor do administrators allow comments that are abusive, hateful or intended to defame anyone or any organization. The fan page also does not allow solicitations or advertisements, nor does it allow comments that suggest or encourage illegal activity.

"Like any posting online, you participate at your own risk, taking personal responsibility for your comments, your username and any information provided," said Philip Rhodes, AFRC social media strategist. "But that shouldn't scare people from participating. The power of Facebook and other social media sites lies in the interaction and community building."