SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
The City of Bigfork will determine, at its discretion, how its web-based social media presence will be designed, implemented and managed. It is the intent of the City of Bigfork to represent itself appropriately, consistently and positively on the internet. Collaborative technologies are fundamentally changing how information is provided, received and how the City can engage it
s citizens. To aid in meeting the goals of the City, the purpose of this policy is to establish procedures for creating and maintaining a social media and online community presence which is in accord with policies and directives established by City management. The City of Bigfork uses social media to provide two-way communication between the public and the City. Social media used by the City may include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or any other site that focuses on creating and fostering online social communities. The City Clerk/Treasurer will be responsible for the creation and maintenance of City pages on various social media sites. Administration of all social media pages must comply with applicable laws, regulations and policies as well as proper business etiquette. Other City employees and elected officials are encouraged to contribute content to City social media sites. A social media site shall not be used by the City or any City employee or representative to disclose sensitive and/or confidential information. Typical postings made by the City may include:
o Public notices regarding meetings, public hearings, etc. o City events
o City partner events
o Other not-for-profit events held in the City
o General information that would be of interest to City residents
Postings not allowed:
o Sales at retail stores
o Garage sales, etc, for individual profit
o Events hosted entirely or primarily for a private gain
o Political commentary
o Confidential information
The City of Bigfork welcomes participation/comments from the public on these sites. As the City desires to maintain a professional and positive atmosphere, the City reserves the right to delete posts/comments that:
• Contain vulgar language
• Are personal attacks of any kind
• Are offensive
• Are prejudiced or hurtful remarks made toward any person or entity, including any ethnic, racial or religious group
• Are spam
• Include sales/promotion of goods or services, or links to other sites
• Are off-topic
• Advocate illegal activity
• Promote services, products or political organizations
• Infringe on copyrights or trademarks
Please note that comments expressed on the City’s social networking pages do not reflect the opinions or positions of the City of Bigfork, its employees or elected officials. The City of Bigfork social media accounts are considered a City asset and logins to these accounts must be securely administered. The City reserves the right to shut down any of its social media sites or accounts for any reason without notice. This policy does not cover any personal social media accounts held by City employees or elected officials.
