In our Spring/Summer Newsletter, we discussed potential problems, legal and otherwise, with the Church's use of social media (i.e, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc.). Here, we suggest steps your Church should take to reduce the likelihood of such problems. First, appoint someone to monitor, operate, and administer your site. This must be someone who is technically savvy, is very familiar with the type(s) of media you are using, is in tune with your organization, and who agrees to abide by your social media policies. Second, do not post or provide personally identifying information - especially about a minor - without prior, written parental permission. Be careful about posting too many specifics about youth events as this just makes it easier for people with evil motives to appear and cause harm. Third, get rid of anything that is inappropriate - whether posted by the Church or someone else. It's your Church's site. You own it. Thus, comments posted by outsiders, if offensive, will nevertheless be attributable to the Church. Also, avoid "inside jokes" when possible. Visitors and others might not find the comments humorous. Your site administrator should check the site daily and "scrub" it of any inappropriate material. Fourth, use the privacy settings on your site to your advantage. Restrict access to certain material. For example, restrict access to photos - generally to members of the Church only. As alluded to above, no pictures of minors should be posted without prior, written parental permission. One final tip to rule them all: if in doubt - don't! Don't post and don't allow access. Everyone will be better off.
To view our Spring/Summer 2011 issue on this topic or to hear a full discussion of social media and the church, go to www.YourLawFirmForLife.com and click on the "Resources" tab where you can view all Newsletters and listen to our attorneys discuss these and other legal matters free of charge.
