Using social mediaresponsibly
Social media havebecome a way of life for many people. And like any way of life, social mediaare an opportunity and a danger. Social media can do good and can cause harm.Using social media well is a craft that needs to be learnt.
The Church of Englandhas recently put forward ten guidelines for the good and positive use of socialmedia. While designed for those using church social media accounts, they aresimple guidelines that we would all be the better for following.
Be safe. The safety of children, young people and vulnerable adultsmust be maintained.
Be respectful. Do not post or share content that is sexuallyexplicit, inflammatory, hateful, abusive, threatening or otherwisedisrespectful.
Be kind. Treat others how you would wish to be treated andassume the best in people. If you have a criticism or critique to make,consider not just whether you would say it in person, but thetone you would use.
Be honest. Dont mislead people about who you are.
Take responsibility. You are accountable for the thingsyou do, say and write. Text and images shared can be public and permanent, evenwith privacy settings in place.
Be a good ambassador. Personal and professional life caneasily become blurred online so think before you post.
Disagree well. Some conversations can be places of robustdisagreement and its important we apply our values in the way we express them.
Credit others. Respect copyright and always credit where it is due. Becareful not to release sensitive or confidential information and alwaysquestion the source of any content you are considering amplifying.
Follow the rules. Abide by the terms and conditions of the varioussocial media platforms themselves.
It would take very little effort on the part of any of usto stick to these. But a huge amount of unhappiness could be avoided, if wedid. Some people would not be permanently damaged. Even some lives would besaved.
Peter Atkinson
Dean ofWorcester
