Social Media Use Policy
This policy outlines appropriate social media behavior for paid and volunteer staff members.
The social media behavior of Wire staff members impacts the appearance, credibility and trustworthiness of the entire organization.
Journalists are expected to maintain a high level of objectivity and fairness in their reporting. These values can be easily compromised by inappropriate posts, shares, likes or retweets on social media sites by all staff members. All members of the organization, no matter the capacity or duties of their work, are affiliated with the organization’s public appearance. Social media behavior by all staff members can affect the credibility of the Marquette Wire, as well as the ability of other staff members to do their jobs effectively.
Failure to adhere to the expectations set forth in this policy is a serious offense and will likely result in disciplinary action.
POLITICAL BELIEFS
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members on the news, A&E, sports, projects and social media desks, as well as all Wire managers, are expected to refrain from sharing political beliefs, affiliations and opinions on social media, whether through personal posts or shares, comments, likes and retweets.
Other paid and volunteer Wire staff members include those on the production team, photo desk, design desk, copy desk and in the MUR audio content and music departments. These paid and volunteer staff members are similarly discouraged from sharing political beliefs, affiliations and opinions on social media, whether through personal posts or shares, comments, likes and retweets. Although these departments do not regularly engage in news reporting, the expression of political leanings by staff members can generate a public perception of partisan leanings by the organization as a whole.
Refraining from sharing political affiliations and opinions includes not openly endorsing candidates or championing one side of a political issue.
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members on the opinions desk are free to share their political beliefs, affiliations and opinions on social media sites. This exception exists because opinions staff members openly express their opinions in Wire publications as part of their job responsibilities. If they choose to share their political beliefs, affiliations and opinions on social media, opinions staff members are required to do so in a respectful manner. If readers wish to engage in discussion with opinions staff on social media, opinions staff members are expected to maintain professional manners.
GENERAL OPINIONS
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members are permitted to share general opinions about lifestyle topics on their social media accounts. This includes opinions on topics such as food, social events, non-Marquette related sports and community events. These opinions are expected to be shared in a light-hearted and respectful manner.
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members are welcome to share journalistic work they admire on social media. It is highly encouraged for staff members to share a variety of content from a variety of publications as not to appear one-sided.
INAPPROPRIATE POSTS
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members are expected not to make inappropriate posts on social media, which could include the following kinds of posts: racist, discriminatory, derogatory, sexist, homophobic, lurid, untruthful and hateful posts.
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members are prohibited from engaging in bullying behavior through social media and other online sites. If another person is aggressive, rude or inconsiderate toward a Wire staff member on social media, the Wire staff member is permitted to block the person. Staff members are strongly discouraged from responding to such comments.
Paid and volunteer Wire staff members are strongly discouraged from posting customer service complaints on their social media accounts. If a staff member has a customer service complaint in their personal life, they are expected to handle the matter privately. It is important that Wire staff members do not have the appearance of receiving preferential treatment for their role in our organization. It is also essential that Wire staff members do not show bias toward certain companies in their social media activities.
JOINING GROUPS AND EVENTS
Paid and volunteer staff members should not join private Facebook or other social media groups that have a political or partisan lean. Similarly, staff members should not join groups about controversial topics. If a staff member is joining such groups for reporting purposes, the staff member should consult editors before joining and about potential posts. They should take care in what they post, comment and like in the group.
Paid and volunteer staff members should also not register to political or partisan events on social media platforms.
THREATS
If a paid or volunteer Wire staff members receives any threats on social media, they are to report the incident(s) to the Wire executive director immediately. The Wire executive director will provide guidance, support and resources to ensure the safety of all staff members.
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ACCOUNTS
The aforementioned policies refer to the personal social media profiles, whether public or private, of Wire staff members. Staff members who choose to create private personal accounts should assume that those accounts will also be affiliated with their position in the organization. Community members can easily screenshot images of posts or shares, comments, likes and retweets from private accounts of Wire staff members, making private accounts similarly susceptible to scrutiny.
USING WIRE SOCIAL MEDIA
Paid or volunteer staff members must get authorization from their supervisor to receive access to utilize Wire social media accounts. Supervisors must receive permission for any of their staff members to have access by consulting the Wire executive director.
If a paid or volunteer staff member is provided access to utilize Wire social media accounts, they are expected to refrain from posting, liking or sharing any content that does not fit the Wire’s professional appearance on social media. This includes the kinds of posts highlighted in the “Inappropriate Posts” section above.
Paid or volunteer Wire staff members are expected to follow specific guidelines from their supervisor(s) when posting on Wire social media accounts. The social media accounts should be solely used to post and promote Wire content and events in a professional manner.
Any staff member making a post on a Wire social media account is required to have at least one editor or manager review and edit the post before publishing it. The posts should be void of grammar mistakes, spelling errors and inaccuracies.