Fed to start monitoring social networks for sentiment

In December, the Fed will begin monitoring Facebook, Twitter, and much of the rest of the internet in an effort to gauge sentiment of the financial world and particularly their own perception. #OccupyWallStreet isn’t the only one hitting the web.

A request for proposal surfaced on Scribd in September:

Federal Reserve Bank of New York (“FRBNY”) is extending to suppliers an invitation to participate in anSentiment Analysis And Social Media Monitoring Solution RFP bid process. The intent is to establish a fair andequitable partnership with a market leader who will who gather data from various social media outlets and newssources and provide applicable reporting to FRBNY. This Request for Proposal (“RFP”) was created in an effort tosupport FRBNY’s Social Media Listening Platforms initiative.

What does this say about the government’s interest in social media? Nothing new – if anything, it’s surprising that they haven’t been monitoring already.