Social Media Policy

The Communications Committee (pictured above) which is in charge of the various ways we communicate with our congregation developed a Social Media Policy for Session last Fall.  With some tweaking, it was approved in 2014.

Guidelines for Social Media Usage at St. Mark Presbyterian Church                                                                                               

Background:

Social media is an important tool that allows St. Mark Presbyterian Church and the Presbyterian Church (USA) to communicate with its members, reach out to potential new members and share its mission with the world.  It is inexpensive, easy to use, timely, and reaches out to a broad demographic.

However, because it enables speaking to a large audience, it’s important that social media is used to speak with one voice.  Every post, blog and Tweet is speaking on behalf of the entire congregation, so being mindful of the messages shared and being respectful of the privacy of our individual members are key factors.

Guidelines:

For the purpose of these guidelines, ALL social media includes, but is not limited to blogs, Facebook, the St. Mark website, newsletter, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

Each social media site can have several Administrators. Administrators can be church volunteers as well as church staff.  These Administrators are able to oversee each social medium and remove postings that are inappropriate and do not adhere to the church’s communication policy.  Inappropriate content will be removed from the social media site by an Administrator as soon as possible after an Administrator for that social media site is made aware of the inappropriate content.

It may become necessary for a staff representative to speak to the appropriate person or body who has posted something that is deemed inappropriate.  Any questions or concerns should be addressed to that person.  If necessary The Communications Committee will consult with a pastor and then with the person who posted, about removing posts that do not promote St. Mark’s mission.

Privacy:

Other than staff members, full names should not be included without the permission of the individual.  Use of photos of individual children requires parental consent.  Exemptions may include large groups of children, or photos where the child’s face is obscured (from the side or back).

Material written for St. Mark by members cannot be published or shared without their permission or the permission of their estate or heir.

Photos and art from the internet may not be used without the approval of the person who took the photo or created the art. (Google images are often copyrighted)

Facebook Usage                        “Discover St. Mark”

Posts should be inspirational, informative or promotional in nature, and related to the life and mission of St. Mark or PC (USA), the missions and charities it supports.  Political and commercial posts will not be permitted, as they may not be an accurate representation of the church congregation as a whole.

Page administrators should include their initials when posting under the “St. Mark” name.  Anything shared on a page using “St. Mark” in the name but not falling within the above guidelines should be shared using the member’s identity and not that of St. Mark Presbyterian Church.  For example, if a person wants to share The Ohio State football score with members of the Youth Fellowship, it should be under the name of the person posting the comment.

Affiliated Non-Sanctioned Facebook Pages

Currently (12/2013) there are three pages:

            “St. Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch” (created by Rebecca Morgan Lewis): serves as an alumni group for adults who grew up in our congregation.

            “St. Mark Sunday School” (created by Doug Reed): was created to share information about a specific Sunday School Class.

            “St. Mark Presbyterian Youth” (created by Ryan Bradney): serves as a communication tool for youth and their parents.

These pages (and any future pages) are closed groups, meaning only those who have been invited to participate can view the information and comment.  Posting opinions and links bear only the individual’s name, however anything deemed inflammatory, derogatory, obscene or commercial in nature may be removed by the administrator(s).

Any new Facebook pages bearing the St. Mark name must be approved by the Session.  For Session approval, the individual must submit the purpose of the page and include this information on the Facebook page as well.  These must be “closed groups”.  For example: a page called “St. Mark Runners” would include as its purpose to announce upcoming events, offer advice for runners, post meeting times and places, etc.  It would not be appropriate for members of that group to promote their businesses since they would not be addressing the group’s purpose.

Conclusion:

When used properly, social media can be an effective way to strengthen relationships among members of our church family and to promote current news and events.  However, it is important to keep in mind the broad audience that social media reaches, well beyond the walls of our church.  Each Tweet has the opportunity to reach potential new members, and each Facebook message posted using the church’s identity will be interpreted to reflect the church’s views as a whole.

Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
Ephesians 4:29