Social media has become an important part of many people’s lives, as the place where they keep up to date on friends’ and family members’ milestones, follow the activities of entertainers and politicians, and share their own experiences and opinions.
For municipalities and their departments, social media options offer an easy, almost free method of distributing information and receiving feedback from the public on an immediate basis.
In Biddeford, the city council’s policy committee is mulling implementation of a social media policy that would govern how city employees and elected officials can use such sites.
It’s not a bad idea, considering that websites such as Facebook and Twitter can be a double-edged sword, sharing information and opinions but also opening up the opportunity for inappropriate comments and dialogue.
The policy committee suggested getting a legal opinion as to the city’s liability for statements made on its official web pages, and we feel that’s a great idea, although this area of law still seems a bit murky.
It’s important to make a distinction, as some committee members sought, between personal pages and official city pages. The police department, for example, has an official Facebook page with an administrator who decides what is posted. Anyone is free to comment on those postings, though the department can decide what remains visible to the public.
The department has had great success with its page, according to Police Chief Roger Beaupre, sharing information about new traffic signals, requests for the public’s help in investigations, and updates on their work. Clearly, this approach should not be banned by any policy, as it is an asset to the city and its residents. The only real drawback to these sites is the consideration of staff time that it takes to maintain them and monitor posts.
For such pages, one spokesperson is designated to administer the page and post official comments from the city or department, and only those comments should be considered as being the voice of the city. If an elected official, city employee or other public figure posts on the page, they are speaking for themselves.
If a city councilor or city employee chooses to have his or her own, personal Facebook page, we do not feel that any restrictions should be placed on what they can post there. On such sites, the person is acting as a private citizen, not as a representative of the city, and should not be penalized for the content they post, so long as it is not of illegal activity.
Just because a person is elected to a board or selected for a particular job, that does not mean they should lose their First Amendment right to free speech, and we do not advocate gagging councilors or anyone else who might seek to share their opinions in an online forum. If they decide to post a political rant or dissertation on why they feel a council decision was wrong on their own personal Facebook page, for example, that should not be punished.
That said, we all have to be aware that whatever we post online, whether it’s on our own personal page or a municipal page, we need to be aware of who can view it and how it may affect our reputation. A councilor who has “friended” a news reporter or chamber of commerce member should expect that if he or she posts a rant about a municipal issue or attacks a well-known person, that information is going to get around.
Comments made via social media should be treated the same as those made in the public square or to traditional media outlets, and we believe the city does not need a new policy. Any comments made online should fall under the same code of ethics to which the councilors have already agreed, and if they cross the line into threatening or libel, the law already covers those concerns.
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Today’s editorial was written by Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen by calling 282-1535, ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.
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