Many cities and towns use social media to share information about services, operations, events and even emergencies. Social media allows users to respond to posts, and they might post offensive messages.
Deleting these offensive messages has First Amendment considerations, and many municipalities have handled this by posting a social media comment policy, providing an objective basis for any deleted comments.
Officials should develop these policies in consultation with their municipal attorney, and make sure they are posted to their social media accounts. On Facebook, for example, cities often post the policy under “About,” and then “Privacy and Legal Info.”
Purpose of the social media profile
Many policies state the social media account’s purpose. The city might indicate that the account is for communicating topics that matter to residents, local businesses and visitors, and provides information on the city’s projects and programming.
Some policies note that the city welcomes comments and questions, but the account provides a moderated, limited forum — not a traditional public forum.
First Amendment case law recognizes a traditional public forum, which could be a public sidewalk, park, town square, or a virtual space, where individuals may speak with few regulations. A limited public forum is a place where the government allows expression for a particular purpose or on a specific topic — for example, the public hearing during a council meeting. Distinguishing a government’s social media as a limited forum provides the basis for moderating comments.
Types of prohibited comments
Policies typically provide objective, generally applicable rules for content that
moderators may remove. Here are typical examples:
- Irrelevant or repetitive content, known as “spam.”
- Content that is obscene, profane, violent or pornographic.
- Content that attacks or harasses people based on factors like race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or religion.
- Overtly threatening or defamatory content.
- Promotions, advertising and solicitation.
- Statements that advocate or encourage illegal activity.
- Sensitive personal identifying information, such as addresses or phone numbers.
Although a city may adopt general, objective rules to moderate content, it cannot discriminate on the speaker’s viewpoint. For example, a city may not delete posts or ban users simply because the speaker is critical of the city, its employees, or its services. In addition, when removing comments, officials should make a record of the deleted material for any potential disputes.