{"id":233102,"date":"2019-04-14T15:49:52","date_gmt":"2019-04-14T05:49:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=233102"},"modified":"2020-07-21T14:18:38","modified_gmt":"2020-07-21T04:18:38","slug":"social-media-posts-on-the-record","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2019\/04\/14\/social-media-posts-on-the-record\/","title":{"rendered":"Social Media Posts Are ‘On The Record’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Replying or reacting to a post on a Councillor’s social media page can wind up in their Council’s permanent records under new guidelines released by the LGAQ and OIA (Graphic: LGAQ\/OIA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Local Government Minister
Stirling Hinchliffe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

April 14, 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

A new set of guidelines explaining the “do’s and don’ts” of how Councillors manage their social media accounts has been issued by the State Government.<\/p>\n

The guidelines include capturing and storing Councillor posts, and replies made to those posts by the public, in each Council’s official records.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Local Government Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the social media guidelines were an important new resource for Queensland\u2019s councillors.<\/p>\n

“Councillor complaints tend to spike ahead of elections, so these new guidelines are particularly relevant leading into the March 2020 Local Government polls,” he said.<\/p>\n

“They\u2019re designed to assist councillors in their interactions with other social media users, and to avoid unnecessary conflict and complaints.”<\/p>\n

Mr Hinchliffe said the guidelines set out how councillors can deal with abusive, threatening and obscene social media posts.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Social media is an important communication tool for councillors that allows people to participate in open and constructive conversation,” he said.<\/p>\n

“But it shouldn\u2019t be used by councillors to shut down debate or block users they consider a nuisance.<\/p>\n

“Councillors should never have to tolerate trolling or abuse, and by following these guidelines they can both protect themselves and minimise the risk of complaints.”<\/p>\n

The Local Government Association of Queensland and the Office of the Independent Assessor collaborated to produce the “Your Social Media and You” guide.<\/p>\n

The new guide outlines: <\/strong><\/p>\n