Social Media Policy Pack

NEWSROOM SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY

Publication: [PUBLICATION NAME]
Version: [VERSION NUMBER]
Last reviewed: [DATE]
Approved by: [EDITOR]

1. PURPOSE
This policy sets out how [PUBLICATION NAME] staff and regular contributors should use social media in a professional capacity, and how our institutional accounts are operated.

2. SCOPE
This policy applies to:
(a) All institutional social media accounts operated under the [PUBLICATION NAME] name or brand.
(b) Personal social media accounts operated by staff journalists where their employer affiliation is stated or apparent.

3. INSTITUTIONAL ACCOUNTS
Institutional accounts are managed by [NAME OF SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR / ROLE]. Only authorised team members hold login credentials. Credentials are stored in [PASSWORD MANAGER / SYSTEM]. Changes to credentials require editor approval.

Posting from institutional accounts:
— Breaking news posts must be factually verified before posting. Speed does not override accuracy.
— All posts must comply with IPSO Editors' Code Clause 1 (Accuracy) and Clause 12 (Discrimination).
— Do not post allegations against named individuals that have not been legally read by an editor.
— Delete and correct errors promptly, with an acknowledgement of the correction.

4. PERSONAL ACCOUNTS — PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
Staff with their employer named in their bio are speaking in a professional capacity when discussing journalism, the sector, or their publication's stories. Such posts must be accurate and must not prejudice ongoing investigations or active legal proceedings.

Staff retain the right to personal views but must make clear when expressing personal opinions that they are not speaking for the publication: e.g. "Views my own."

5. PROHIBITED CONTENT
Staff may not post:
— Content that could prejudice a fair trial (see Contempt of Court Act 1981)
— Information that identifies a protected person (sexual offence victim, child)
— Content that constitutes harassment (Protection from Harassment Act 1997)
— Sponsored or paid content without disclosure

6. ELECTION PERIODS
See separate Election-Period Rules. During election campaign periods, additional restrictions apply to all institutional accounts and to personal accounts where the staff member's employer affiliation is apparent.

7. MONITORING AND COMPLAINTS
The social media editor monitors institutional accounts for complaints. Harassment of staff on social media is escalated per the Online Harassment Escalation Procedure. Complaints about editorial content posted on social media follow our standard editorial complaints procedure.

8. REVIEW
This policy is reviewed annually or following significant changes to platform terms or UK legislation.

PERSONAL SOCIAL MEDIA DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

I, [YOUR NAME], journalist at [PUBLICATION], post this statement to be transparent about my personal social media use:

This account is my personal account. Views expressed here are my own and do not represent the editorial position of [PUBLICATION].

Where I share or comment on stories published by [PUBLICATION], I am doing so in a personal capacity. For official comment on [PUBLICATION]'s journalism, please contact [EDITOR NAME / PRESS EMAIL].

I follow [PUBLICATION]'s Social Media Policy and IPSO/NUJ editorial guidelines in my professional activity online.

[OPTIONAL — add any relevant disclosures:]
— I am a member of [PARTY / ORGANISATION]: this is declared and does not affect my editorial work, which is conducted independently.
— I may occasionally share links to my freelance work published elsewhere.

Contact for editorial matters: [EMAIL]

[YOUR NAME]
[ROLE], [PUBLICATION]

ELECTION-PERIOD SOCIAL MEDIA RULES

Publication: [PUBLICATION NAME]
Applicable elections: [e.g. UK General Election / Local Elections / By-election in [CONSTITUENCY]]
Election campaign period: [START DATE — polling day: DATE]
Last reviewed: [DATE]

THESE RULES APPLY FROM [START DATE] UNTIL POLLS CLOSE ON [POLLING DAY].

1. INSTITUTIONAL ACCOUNTS
(a) Do not post content that advocates for any political party, candidate, or referendum option.
(b) Any endorsement post requires editor sign-off. Do not post institutional opinions on electoral choices.
(c) Constituency-level results must not be posted before the official count announcement.
(d) Exit polls: under UK electoral law and broadcasting convention, do not publish any exit poll data before 10pm on polling day.
(e) Balance: if you platform one party's campaign content, apply the same standard to comparable parties.

2. PERSONAL ACCOUNTS (STAFF WITH EMPLOYER AFFILIATION VISIBLE)
(a) Do not publicly campaign for or against any candidate or party during the campaign period.
(b) Do not post content that could be construed as electoral advertising.
(c) Do not share unverified turnout figures, vote counts, or results before official declaration.
(d) Political party membership and past donations that could affect perceived impartiality should be declared to your editor.

3. BROADCAST JOURNALISTS
Ofcom Section 6 (due impartiality) applies to broadcast content and is relevant to social media activity that is clearly linked to your broadcast role. Consult your compliance team if uncertain.

4. VERIFICATION STANDARD
During election periods, apply heightened verification to any claim about results, turnout, or candidate conduct before posting. Disinformation spreads faster during elections.

5. BREACHES
Suspected breaches of this policy should be reported to [EDITOR / HEAD OF DIGITAL] immediately.

Sources: Ofcom Broadcasting Code Section 6, Representation of the People Act 1983, IPSO Editors' Code Clause 1

ONLINE HARASSMENT ESCALATION PROCEDURE

Publication: [PUBLICATION NAME]
Last reviewed: [DATE]

PURPOSE
This procedure sets out how [PUBLICATION NAME] responds to online harassment of staff journalists.

STEP 1 — IMMEDIATE RESPONSE (same day)
If you are experiencing online harassment:
1. Do not engage with harassers publicly.
2. Screenshot and preserve all harassing content (including usernames, timestamps, URLs) before reporting or blocking.
3. Report to [SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR / LINE MANAGER] immediately, even if you are uncertain whether it reaches the threshold for formal escalation.

STEP 2 — INITIAL ASSESSMENT (within 24 hours)
The social media editor or line manager assesses whether the harassment:
[ ] Constitutes a credible threat to physical safety → go to Step 4 immediately
[ ] Constitutes a pattern of targeted abuse (coordination, repeated accounts) → go to Step 3
[ ] Is isolated and low-level → document and monitor

STEP 3 — PLATFORM REPORTING (within 48 hours)
Report all content that constitutes harassment to the platform:
— Preserve evidence before reporting (platforms may remove content once reported)
— Use official platform reporting tools
— Note the report reference number(s)
— If content constitutes illegal harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 or Malicious Communications Act 1988, proceed to Step 4

STEP 4 — POLICE REPORTING
Where harassment is credible, persistent, or threatening:
— Report to local police (101) or in an emergency dial 999
— The NUJ Online Safety Hub (nuj.org.uk) provides a template for police reports by journalists
— Retain all evidence, including screenshots and platform report references

STEP 5 — PUBLICATION SUPPORT
[PUBLICATION NAME] will:
— Provide legal advice where required
— Support the journalist in taking time off if harassment is causing distress
— Consider temporary suspension of the journalist's visible social media presence if they wish
— Issue a public statement supporting the journalist if appropriate

STEP 6 — REVIEW
All harassment incidents are logged (without personal data being shared beyond the editor and journalist) and reviewed quarterly to identify patterns.

Sources: Ofcom Online Safety Act guidance (ofcom.org.uk/online-safety), NUJ Online Safety Hub (nuj.org.uk), Protection from Harassment Act 1997

OFF-PLATFORM TAKEDOWN REQUEST

Date: [DATE]
Your name: [YOUR FULL NAME]
Your publication: [PUBLICATION]
Platform: [PLATFORM NAME, e.g. X/Twitter / Meta/Facebook / YouTube]
Content URL(s): [URL(S) — include every URL where the content appears]

CONTENT DESCRIPTION
Type of content: [ ] Post  [ ] Video  [ ] Image  [ ] Profile  [ ] Other: [SPECIFY]
Brief description: [DESCRIBE THE CONTENT AND WHY IT IS HARMFUL]

GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL (tick all that apply)

[ ] Harassment under platform community standards
The content constitutes targeted harassment of myself as a journalist. It [describe: threatens / repeatedly targets / coordinates abuse against] me in violation of [PLATFORM]'s community standards on harassment.

[ ] Defamatory content
The content makes false statements of fact about me that are defamatory under UK law (Defamation Act 2013). Specifically: [DESCRIBE THE FALSE STATEMENT].

[ ] Illegal content under UK law
The content constitutes [an offence under the Malicious Communications Act 1988 / a communications offence under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 / stalking under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 / other: SPECIFY].

[ ] Privacy violation
The content discloses my private personal information (doxxing), specifically: [DESCRIBE — e.g. home address / personal phone number].

ACTION REQUESTED
I request that you:
1. Remove the above content immediately.
2. Suspend or restrict the account(s) responsible.
3. Provide a reference number for this report.
4. Inform me when the content has been removed.

I confirm the information above is accurate. I understand that making false claims may have consequences under your platform's policies.

[YOUR NAME]
[EMAIL]

Sources: IPSO Guidance, Ofcom Online Safety Act Guidance (ofcom.org.uk/online-safety), NUJ Online Safety Hub (nuj.org.uk/resource/online-safety-hub.html)