A new video on the City of Boise's brand new TikTok asks the question:
What's the scariest Halloween costume you can think of?
Below is what social media manager Elizabeth Kidd came up with. Can you guess what it is?
What is that thing? City of Boise/TikTok
If you guessed:
- A ball of popcorn
- Spray foam insulation
- Or a scoop of lard
... you'd be wrong!
In the city's inaugural TikTok video, Elizabeth shares all about the horrors of 'fatbergs' — rock hard clumps of wet wipes and FOG (fats, oils, and grease) that clog up sewers.
She dresses up as the terrifying (and disgusting) glob and proceeds to run around City Hall scaring all of her coworkers.
@cityofboise Name a scary movie that’s scarier than realizing that there might be a giant mass of bacon grease held together with used flushable wipes forcing its way through our water renewal system right now, we’ll wait.
The video was hilarious, obviously, but it was also educational — fatbergs can be incredibly destructive to the sewer system and are easily prevented by just teaching more people about them!
Commenters loved the "spooky" video, immediately comparing it to the beloved sitcom 'Parks & Rec.'
"I love this new season of Parks & Rec." one user wrote.
"We need more episodes," added another.
The similarities are obvious, from the deadpan delivery to the "talking head" interviews. Even some of the characters feel familiar, like the Mayor and Public Works Director.
'Parks & Rec' came under fire later in its run for not being explicitly political enough, but it did touch on a lot of topics that actually matter to communities .
We loved the characters and were laughing so hard that we didn't even realize we were learning about things like how parks get made, water access, privatization and public health.
The City of Boise's social team is trying to have the same effect.
In an election year, it's easy to forget the importance of local government.
The work local elected officials and public servants do usually has a much bigger impact on your life than who ultimately becomes the president.
But — city and town governments get a LOT less press.
"My goal with this platform - and all our social media! - is to help all Boiseans feel more connected to their city government and inspire them to get involved," Kidd says. "I hope that by creating [something] fun and educational, I create a few more Boise super fans."
Boise isn't the first city to try an approach like this. Lots of city and other local governments have made humorous TikToks about voting, recycling, and public works campaigns.
But right now, even with just one video, Boise is one of the most successful case studies,.
It's awesome to see people who are working hard on a local level to improve our lives get a well-deserved platform, and kudos to all the social teams out there who are willing to try a unique and comedic approach to get the message out.
We can't wait to see what the Boise team comes up with next.
Local News
Comments / 0