City of Laguna Beach Police Department Social Media

Standard Operating Procedure

City of Laguna Beach Police Department Social Media

Social Media: The Role of Social Media in

Emergency Management and Public Safety

Agencies

I.  PURPOSE:

The purpose of this Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is to establish protocols and procedures for the implementation and uses of Social Media for Emergency Management and our Public Safety Agencies. It is to provide guidance to employees, contract staff, consultants, and other users who have been authorized to create, publish, or update social media sites on behalf of the City.

II.  PRIMARY INTENT:

The primary intent of this policy is to establish goals of the City of Laguna Beach Police Department for using social media, provide criteria for selecting specific social media outlets, which employees are authorized to use social media, the type of information allowed to be broadcast through social media, and how employees shall conduct themselves while using social media.

III.  GOALS:

The goal’s of the City’s social media SOP is to provide emergency disaster information such as evacuation notices, shelter location, or warning of the possibility of severe weather, to the community in real time as information becomes available. Other non emergency information that will be broadcasted is disaster preparedness information and public safety information such as stolen vehicle information, press releases regarding recent crimes, or job postings.

IV.  BACKGROUND

Social Media refers to media designed to share content (including information, images, audio, video) through social networking websites. Social media is by nature interactive. Because of this it is inherently less controllable than traditional media and should be undertaken with full awareness that not all comments and conversations will show the City in a positive light. The term “social networking sites” describes internet-based communication platforms that have a focus on immediacy, interactivity, and user participation. Just as email and static websites were new communication methods in the previous decade, social networking allows individuals and organizations the ability to create a profile and share contact with others. Examples of social networking sites include, but are not limited to:

*Facebook

*Twitter

*YouTube

*Blogs

*LinkedIn

*Photo sharing sites, such as Flickr

*online discussion groups

.

V.  GENERAL GUIDELINES

·  Use of City computers to post information on a social media website is subject to all applicable policies of the City of Laguna Beach regarding use of City computers.

·  Only the City Manager, Police Chief, and Emergency Manager, and employees authorized in writing by the Police Chief, are authorized to post on a social media website on behalf of the City of Laguna Beach.

·  All information broadcasted must directly pertain to the City of Laguna Beach.

·  Must only contain information that is available to the public and that is not made confidential by any policy of the City of Laguna Beach, or by local, state, or federal law.

·  Always present the City of Laguna Beach in a positive light.

·  Never allowed to solicit business for any individual, political group, foundation, business, charity, or religious organization.

·  Communications must not include language of a nature that is sexually explicit, or that is lewd or obscene, racial, or illegal, or that expresses an opinion.

·  Must not share photographs or images of anyone who can be identified without first obtaining a signed release of any such person, or a parent of a minor.

·  Profile picture or background image must be the City of Laguna Beach seal.

VI.  SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT SET UP AND SETTINGS

Only specific social networking sites are approved for use. They are the

following:

·  Facebook

·  Twitter

These sites were selected because of the amount of users and popularity. The City of Laguna Beach feels that standardization in information communicated is important, therefore limiting the amount of social networking sites would aid in this process.

Account names or user names on social media sites shall be created using “LagunaBeach911” or “LagunaBeachPD”. The department name, purpose, or individual names may also be included in the “about me” section, if applicable.

Social networking sites must be set up using a valid City of Laguna Beach e-mail address. Profiles or posted content must never contain a personal e-mail address or any other personal information, except the name of the employee whose job duties include being available for contact by the public via a city e-mail account.

Upon creating a social media account authorized staff members must provide the user names, passwords, and account URL to the City Manager and Police Chief. Additionally all social media profile names are to be listed on the City of Laguna Beach website to assist citizens identify official social media presences.

All City of Laguna Beach social media sites shall enable all accessibility features available on the sites to make the content as accessible to everyone as possible. However, the City of Laguna Beach does not use social media to solicit comments from the public, nor does it intend to create a public forum for the discussion of City issues or any other topic. Therefore, all City of Laguna Beach social media sites must have the “comment or post” feature disabled.

VII.  PUBLIC RECORDS ACT

Content on all City of Laguna Beach social media accounts is a public record and as such California Public Records Act and e-discovery laws and polices apply. All content must be able to be managed, stored, and retrieved to comply with these laws.

VIII.  DISCLAIMER

If at all possible all City of Laguna Beach social media accounts will contain the following City disclaimer:

“The City of Laguna Beach’s use of external social media websites is provided as a public service. The City of Laguna Beach disclaims liability for ads, videos, promoted content, or messages accessible from any external web page. The responsibility of external content or messages rests with the organization or individuals providing them. Any inclusion of external content or messages on external social media websites does not imply endorsement by the City of Laguna Beach”

IX.  AUTHORIZED USERS

Authorized users are those that have access and the ability to post/broadcast information through social media outlets. Authorized users must understand and abide by this policy. Authorized users:

Chief of Police

Support Services Commander/PIO

Emergency Manager

X.  POLICY

The City’s Social Media outlets (Facebook and/or Twitter) may be used to post/broadcast messages to the public of potential hazards, recommended protective actions, City’s emergency response activities, Disaster preparedness information, Police Department press releases, Job opportunities, Confirmed stolen vehicle information taken from the City of Laguna Beach, and any other emergency information that the public should be made aware of.

Because of the Public Records Act (PRA) all tweets/posts are subject to subpoena, therefore all tweets/posts are to be recorded in a ‘word’ file with the date and time posted/tweeted for record keeping.

The City of Laguna Beach’s social media profiles are to be used in conjunction with existing notification tools, policies and procedures, and do not replace any existing notification system. Any procedure, protocol, or policy not addressed shall follow those in the City’s Emergency Operation Plan (EOP).

XI.  SOCIAL MEDIA: EXAMPLES OF EMERGENCY USES

·  Imminent or perceived threat to life or property

·  Disaster notifications

·  Evacuation notices

·  Public health emergencies

·  Public safety emergencies

·  Any notification to provide emergency information to the public

As a general rule, social media accounts are to be used when the public is being asked to take some action (e.g., evacuate, prepare to evacuate, shelter in place, boil tap water before drinking, etc)

XII.  SOCIAL MEDIA: EXAMPLES OF NON-EMERGENCY USES

·  Disaster preparedness information

·  Police Department press releases

·  Job Opportunities

XIII.  INTERDEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION:

The City of Laguna Beach’s social media accounts shall not be used for internal

department communication.

XIV.  RESPONSIBILITES

·  During Emergency Operation Center (EOC) activation it is the responsibility of the PIO to post/tweet emergency information on City of Laguna Beach social media accounts.

·  Prior to activation of the EOC the Emergency Manager and/or Police Chief will have the authority to tweet/post.

XV.  PROCEDURE:

The following social media activation steps have been developed to ensure system use is properly executed.

·  EOC Emergency Messaging - The procedure below specifies how messages to the public are created and delivered.

Requests for Messages to the public may be received from the field via the Operations Section or generated by the EOC. Agencies and/or officials, specified under RESPONSIBILITIES, are authorized to activate and use the social media system, however others may request social media messages to be sent out, by following these steps.

1.  Contact the Laguna Beach Police PIO or Emergency Manager.

2.  State who you are and reasons for a mass notification.

3.  Determine message parameters. The information below shall be

recorded in hard copy prior to its entry into the social media system:

a)  Requesting party

b)  Contact phone numbers for requesting party

c)  Name and title of authorizing City staff member

d)  Date and time message is to be sent

e)  Recipients of message (type, specific geographic area, etc.)

f)  Type(s) of message (Facebook or Twitter)

XVI.  DOCUMENTATION:

The following documents may be generated by the implementation of this

procedure:

·  Logs of actions taken

·  Message reports

If the EOC is activated, all records shall be provided to the Planning Section

Documentation Unit at the end of the event.

If the EOC is not activated, all records shall be provided to the Emergency

Manager.

XVII.  ATTACHMENTS:

·  Attachment A: AlertOC Activation Form

Attachment A: Social Media Activation Form

Social Media Activation Form

Request Received
Date/Time:
By: (Name/Title)

· 

Requestors Contact Information
Name:
Title:
Contact Phone Numbers: / #1: / #2:
Authorizing Official: (Name/Title)
Message Specifics
Date/Time Message to Be Sent: Immediately
Targeted Recipients:
Type of Message: Facebook Twitter
Message Content:

· 

Personnel Staff Executing Message
Initiator Name (printed):
Authorizing City Official:
Date and Time Sent:
Name, Date, and Time Results Provided to Jurisdiction

1

11