Police Visibility and ‘Legitimacy Gaps’

This chapter provides perspectives on the impact of social media on trust and confidence in operational policing and the police institution based on a purposive quantitative and qualitative online survey of frequent social media news consumers within the NSW LGBTQI and allied community (n = 97). The broader range of news sources accessed by digital news consumers, while acknowledging user partisan affinity, and the impact of personalized algorithms and targeted advertising on user consumption, might more readily point to ‘legitimacy gaps’ between police apparatuses and the consistent police-controlled narratives constructed through police media units. The responses from this sample indicate differing perceptions to the general population on questions of police fair and equitable treatment, honesty and professionalism. The responses also show the blend of recognition and responsibilization messaging inherent in police image work within LGBTQI communities. Varied perspectives show that the benefits of police visibility are case- and context-specific. The chapter demonstrates the benefit of triangulated data in explaining complex phenomena and calls for more nuanced research into trust and confidence in the police within LGBTQI communities.