The public can now send messages to US President Barack Obama via Facebook Messenger, the White House announced.
A Messenger box pops up, after which a user clicks "Let's go!". A message then asks "Great! Now, what would you like to say to President Obama?".
The Messenger bot then asks you to check your message and asks for a US address. If you are not in the US, the White House bot accepts a user providing an email address.
In an online post, the White House chief digital officer Jason Goldman said that Obama reads 10 letters a day that come in via physical letters or email. Now Facebook messages will form a part of that.
"To make sure that in all the hustle and bustle that's taken place here, we don't lose sight of why we're here — which is a bunch of citizens all across the country, needing our help, seeking advice, more than occasionally being angry, wanting to be heard," Obama said in a statement.
"And what's interesting is not only do these letters help me to stay in touch with the people who sent me here, or the people who voted against me, but a lot of times they identify problems that might not have percolated up through the various agencies and bureaucracies. And more than once there have been occasions where these letters inspired action on real problems that are out there."
It's the not the first time that the White House has looked to stay connected via social media. Obama joined Twitter in May last year, while in June, Michelle Obama launched her own Snapchat account.
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