Social Media Policy

Walla Walla County Community Health Department 
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY STATEMENT

Title:  Social Media Policy
Effective Date:  3/1/2020            

I.               Introduction

To address the fast-changing landscape of the Internet and the way residents communicate and obtain information online, the Department of Community Health (DCH) has established a social media policy for all platforms.  DCH has an overriding interest and expectation in deciding what is “spoken” on its behalf on social media sites. 

II.              Policy Statement

This policy establishes guidelines for the use of social media. 

 III.            Policies/Procedures

A.           Privacy Policy and Disclaimer:  Any individual accessing, browsing and using a Department of Community Health (DCH) Social Media site accepts without limitation or qualification, DCH Social Media Policies (hereafter "Policies"). These terms and conditions apply only to the Social Media sites (defined here as third party hosted online technologies that facilitate social interaction and dialogue, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube) that are managed by DCH.   DCH maintains the right to modify these Policies without notice. Any modification is effective immediately upon posting the modification on the Social Media Policy page unless otherwise stated. Continued use of a DCH Social Media site following the posting of any modification signifies acceptance of such modification.

 B.           All users of a DCH Social Media site are also subject to the site’s own Privacy Policy. DCH has no control over a site’s privacy policy or their modifications to it. DCH also has no control over content, commercial advertisements, or other postings produced by the Social Media site that appear on DCH site as part of the site’s environment. The posts and comments on the DCH sites do not necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of the County of Walla Walla or its employees.

 C.            DCH operates and maintains its Social Media sites as a public service to provide information about disaster preparedness and response, county programs, services, projects, issues, events and activities. DCH assumes no liability for any inaccuracies these Social Media sites may contain and does not guarantee that the Social Media sites will be uninterrupted, permanent, or error-free.

 D.           Posts Policy:  Although we encourage posts and comments on DCH Social Media sites that allow posts, these sites are limited public forums and are moderated by county staff. All posted content (comments, photos, links, etc.) must be related to the topic at hand. The following are prohibited on DCH Social Media sites:

  •  Comments not topically related to the particular post being commented upon;
  • Posts and comments that promote or advertise commercial services, entities or;
  • Political statements, including comments that endorse or oppose political candidates or ballot propositions, are prohibited under state law (RCW 42.52.180);
  • Posts and comments that promote, foster or perpetuate discrimination on the basis of creed, color, age, religion, gender, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation or an individual’s medical status;
  • Potentially defamatory statements and posts.
  • Posts and comments that include vulgar, offensive, threatening or harassing language or personal attacks;
  • Obscene or sexual content or links to obscene or sexual content;
  • Illegal activity or encouragement of illegal activity;
  • Information that may tend to compromise the safety or security of the public or public systems;
  • Comments from children under 13 cannot be posted in order to comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. By posting on a DCH social media site, users acknowledge that they are at least 13 years old. Those 12 years old or younger may email DCH instead (health@co.walla-walla.wa.us);
  • Content that violates a legal ownership interest of any other party, including copyright or trademark interests; or
  • Anonymous posts.

 E.            DCH reserves the right to remove posted content that does not comply with these Policies. All posts and comments uploaded to DCH Social Media sites that allow posts will be periodically reviewed. All posts and comments are public records subject to public disclosure under the Public Records Act and the retention periods set by the State of Washington.

 F.            Communications made through DCH Social Media sites in no way constitute a legal or official notice or comment to DCH. (For example, a post or comment that asks for public records will not be considered a public records request under RCW 42.56.) To comment about a DCH project or program, please contact Walla Walla County Emergency Management department.

 G.           Links Policy:  Links to other Social Media Sites and External Websites Provided on DCH Social Media Sites DCH may select links to other Social Media sites and outside websites that offer helpful resources for users. Once an individual links to another page or site, the DCH Policies no longer apply and you become subject to the policies of that page or site. DCH's Social Media sites are intended specifically to share information about disaster preparedness and response, county programs, events and services. Walla Walla Emergency Management is not responsible for the content that appears on these outside links and provides these links as a convenience only. Users should be aware that these external pages and sites and the information found on those pages and sites are not controlled by, provided by or endorsed by DCH. DCH reserves the right to delete links posted by outside individuals that violate the DCH Policy at any time without notice.

 H.           Links by Other Entities to DCH Social Media Sites:  It is not necessary to get advance permission to link to DCH Social Media sites; however, entities and individuals linking to DCH Social Media sites may not capture any of the DCH Media sites within frames, present DCH content as their own or otherwise misrepresent any of the DCH’s Social Media site content. Furthermore, they shall not misinform users about the origin or ownership of DCH Social Media site content. Links to DCH Social Media sites should not in any way suggest that DCH has any relationship or affiliation with that organization or that DCH endorses, sponsors or recommends the information, products or services of that site.

 I.             Copyright Policy:  All information and materials generated by Walla Walla Emergency Management and provided on DCH Social Media sites are the property of DCH. DCH retains copyright on all text, graphic images and other content that was produced by DCH and found on the page. You may print copies of information and material for your own noncommercial use, if you retain the copyright symbol or other such proprietary notice intact on any copyrighted materials you copy. Please include a credit line reading: "credit: DCH Facebook (or Twitter or YouTube) Page" or "Courtesy of DCH."

 J.             Commercial use of text, DCH logo, Walla Walla County logo, photos and other graphics is prohibited without the express written permission of DCH. Use of the DCH or Walla Walla County logo is prohibited for any nongovernmental purpose. Any person reproducing or redistributing a third-party copyright must adhere to the terms and conditions of the third-party copyright holder. If you are a copyright holder and you feel that DCH did not use an appropriate credit line please notify DCH with detailed information about the circumstances, so that the copyright information can be added or the material in question can be removed.

 Contact Us:  If you have any questions or concerns about the DCH Social Media Policy or its implementation, or if you find incorrect information or are interested in seeking permissions that fall outside of the guidelines above, please contact the DCH.

 IV.            Related Policies, Procedures, Forms, Guidelines, and Other Resources

V.             History

A.           Adopted:

B.           Revised: 7/24/2020

C.            Last Reviewed

Please note: comments on posts from campaigns developed in partnership with the Washington State Department of Health are monitored per the Washington State Department of Health's social media policy. Their social media commenting policy can be found here: https://www.doh.wa.gov/newsroom/socialmedia#commenting