Innovation through social media in the public sector: Information and interactions

•A content analysis on information and interactions in Chinese government microblogs.•A majority of messages were posted for self-promotion rather than service delivery.•The forms, languages and timeliness of messages posted are monotonous and formal.•Interactions between governments and the public were mostly insufficient and preliminary.•Chinese government’ use of microblogs is improved over time.

This paper conducts a content analysis on the performance of information and interactions in selected Chinese government microblog accounts as innovations in the public sector. In specific, the study examines the quantity, content, stakeholders related, government levels related, timeliness, forms, language styles, sources of message, the use of push, and responses in government accounts. The study finds that a majority of messages in government microblog accounts were posted for self-promotion rather than service delivery. The forms, languages and timeliness of information posted tend to be monotonous, rigid and formal, and the interactions between governments and the public in government microblog accounts were mostly insufficient and preliminary. Furthermore, a longitudinal comparison between data in two sequential years also indicates that government use of microblogs is improved over time. Based on the findings, the paper provides relevant recommendations to governments.