Comcast is increasing up its presence on Twitter and Facebook as it tries to repair the damage done by a string of very public customer service catastrophes. The company is now hiring 40 new "social care specialists" to respond to customers over social media, adding to its existing social staff of 20. They'll be able to help with everything from scheduling appointments to troubleshooting Internet problems and setting up DVRs. These 40 new specialists will act as a customer service center on social media . In one of the more embarrassing incidents, a Comcast customer posted a recording of a frustrating eight-minute phone call in which a rep refused to cancel the caller's service. And Comcast landed in hot water earlier this year after someone at the company changed the name of customer Ricardo Brown to A-- hole Brown on a bill after he canceled the cable service. A 63 year-old from Illinois got a bill in the mail addressed to Super B---- Bauer The hiring push is just one way the company is addressing its customer service problem. Comcast spokeswoman Jennifer Khoury said : "We have thousands of people answering service calls on the phone, and for many customers that's great. But some people would rather go online, and we want to make sure to give them that choice," Meanwhile, Comcast (NASDAQ:CCV) is planning to merge with Time Warner Cable (NASDAQ:TWC). The deal was struck last year, but still needs federal approval. Comments by customers on CNN Money : "Good call Comcast. Much better to hire public relations people than to fix the underlying service issues. Maybe if you treated your customers half way decently you wouldn't need the extra PR! " "More like BOT RESPONSES manned by 40 developers from X foreign country. Eastern Europes cheaper now than China? The world is a total. Pay off your home before 15 years from now when all the dominoes collapse. "