Meeghan Black serves as the first civilian Public Information Officer for the Bellevue Police Department. As PIO, Meeghan oversees the external and internal communications for the department, which serves a diverse community of nearly 150,000 residents. Meeghan leverages social and traditional media to engage and educate the community on public safety issues.
Prior to joining the police department in 2019, Meeghan was an Emmy award-winning broadcast journalist and communications specialist. For nearly 30 years, Meeghan was a storyteller, reporter, anchor, meteorologist, and program host. She also consults with area nonprofits and is a frequent emcee and speaker through her company Meeghan Black Media.
12:45 p.m.–1:30 p.m. Pacific Time — Tuesday, May 10, 2022
Whether it’s a planned large-scale event, protest or riot, what and how you communicate can make a big difference in building community trust. Following the murder of George Floyd, communities across the country found themselves in the middle of the social justice movement. Bellevue, Washington experienced its first-ever large-scale riot, followed by multiple protests in the subsequent months. We’ll take a close look at several protests as they played out on BPD’s social media, examining mistakes, adjustments and lessons learned by listening to community feedback. We’ll also talk about the importance of post-event communication with your community.
Session takeaways: