Westminster Presbyterian Church

Westminster Presbyterian Church
SOCIAL & ELECTRONIC MEDIA POLICY

As the Internet and digital communication have become an integral part of contemporary life, WPC recognizes that it must adapt its ministry to the changing environment. Technology offers new and powerful tools for bringing people into relationship with Christ via social media. We can reach out to friends in our neighborhood and strangers in other countries with equal ease, sharing information and engaging in dialogue.
While social media offer a startling array of new possibilities for creating community, they also have the potential to expose WPC to serious risk. The purpose of this policy is to create a framework that will allow us to employ technology in ways that serve our church, and at the same time mitigate the risk of negative exposure and/or liability. It covers all current use of electronic and social media communication, including e-mail, cell phone use, the WPC website, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs, and new applications as they come into use.

Supervision by Communication & Church Support
No employee or member of WPC shall create or use a media site in the name of or purporting to represent the WPC without the express permission of the Communication Committee as documented in its minutes.

Standards of Conduct
No use of racial, sexual, or obscene speech, or any form of harassment is permitted at any time. Persons assigned by the Committee to administer any form of social media used by WPC will monitor content and moderate discussion.


Facebook Page
1. The Communications Committee shall appoint the Page Administrator(s) to monitor the FB Page, and the Page guidelines shall be published on the Page.
2. Copyrighted material shall not be posted without permission.
3. Trademarks shall not be used without permission.
4. Advertising of products or services that benefit the contributor is prohibited. Links to sites that offer relevant services and/or products relevant are permitted.
6. Contributors shall attribute when quoting someone else.
7. Profane or hateful comments are prohibited. Comments should at all times be respectful, even when expressing a differing perspective.
8. Links to pages with offensive content are prohibited.
9. Administrator(s) shall remove non-complying content.
10. If an open or closed group is established, a staff person shall be included. Secret Groups shall not be permitted.
11. WPC has created this Facebook page to:
-Communicate directly with the WPC community about services, announcements, and events.
-Cultivate community, support, prayer, and interaction among those who are reached through this page.


Removing Posts:
When appropriate, the page administrator may remove posts.

Posts will be removed if they:
-Violate Facebook Terms of Service.
-Have the potential to hinder the spiritual growth of others.
-Are an attempt to sell goods or services.
-Are deemed unnecessary for any reason by the page administrator(s)

Questions

If you have specific questions about WPC’s Facebook page, please e-mail info1@wpcwestlake.org


Response

WPC is committed to prompt, professional and measured response to all
circumstances, which may range from violations of these policies and procedures to suspicions or allegations of abuse. We are committed to (1) seriously consider the concerns of victims; (2) undertake a fair investigation of policy violations; (3) protect the privacy of parties involved in investigation; (4) report to as required and cooperate fully with public authorities; (5) and consider the reputation of individuals and WPC;