South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem recently made headlines when she deleted two state-affiliated social media accounts over the 4th of July weekend without providing an explanation. The accounts in question were her official @govkristinoem Twitter account and her Gov. Noem Facebook account, both of which have now gone dark. Visitors to these accounts are met with messages indicating that the content is no longer available.
Questions arose on social media regarding the sudden deactivation of Governor Noem's official accounts, with users expressing curiosity about the timing and reasoning behind the move. Despite multiple attempts to reach out to Noem's office for clarification, no response was provided. Instead, the office directed inquiries to a new Twitter account called the Office of Governor Noem, which was created this month and has been sharing press releases from the governor's office since July 3.
State Representative Tony Venhuizen commented on the situation, noting that it is common for elected officials to maintain separate personal and official social media accounts to distinguish between personal opinions and official government communications. Venhuizen emphasized the importance of this separation, highlighting that personal accounts allow for expressing opinions and promoting campaigns, while official accounts are reserved for sharing information on government actions and disaster responses.
Prior to their deactivation, Governor Noem's accounts had amassed over 700,000 followers. Her Twitter account gained significant attention during the pandemic as she advocated for keeping South Dakota open amid nationwide lockdowns. Notably, Noem faced criticism from various social media users after revealing in her memoir that she had euthanized an aggressive farm dog named Cricket more than two decades ago. The governor defended her actions, stating that the dog had displayed aggressive behavior towards people by biting them.
