Never release a hashtag into the wild - New York Cops weather social media storm

The New York Police Department walked straight into a social media storm today with the launch of their #myNYPD hashtag - proving once again that failure to analyse risks, issues and reputation before a social media campaign, then adjusting behaviour accordingly, leads to significant problems.

The Storify below is just a small taste of the backlash unleashed following the hashtag launch and it isn't showing any signs of improvement any time soon.  Some on social media who have had more positive experiences with the NYPD have rallied to their defence but analysing the tweets the commentary has been predominantly negative.

The moral of the story: Never release a hashtag into the wild without thinking about why you are running it in the first place and understanding that you have absolutely no control over its behaviour.