NYPD request for photos on Twitter backfires

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NEW YORK (AP) — The head of the New York Police Department admits he was caught off guard by the harsh response to a harmless attempt at community outreach on Twitter.

But Commissioner William Bratton says he has no plans to abandon social media.

Bratton made the remarks on Wednesday after online pranksters, known as trolls, posted hundreds of recycled images of alleged police brutality.

They were responding to a Twitter request by the NYPD to offer up feel-good photos of people posing with police officers.

Experts questioned Wednesday how the NYPD didn’t anticipate the potential public relations debacle.

One said other large organizations have seen hashtags become “bashtags.”

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