Social Media Policy

“On the whole, social media is intended to facilitate sharing, collaboration, transparency, and conversation” (Steiner, Strategic Planning for Social Media in Libraries)

Tompkins County Public Library’s social media plan resonates with our vision to inspire and engage all members of the community, our mission to provide a core community service that fosters literacy, cultural appreciation, personal growth and civic engagement, and our organization-wide goals in the following areas:

Knowledge and Creativity

• Provide an inviting, current online presence
• Encourage personal reflection and critical thinking
• Contribute to community well-being, engagement and participation through programs, and activities to facilitate personal growth and human connections
• Provide opportunities for inspiration

Literacy

• Provide and promote youth and adult programs such as the Summer Reading, storytimes, teen workshops, adult literacy, and adult reading challenge
• Foster partnerships with organizations that support reading and protect intellectual freedom

Community Connection

• Respond to social and technological change through services for an increasingly mobile society
• Serve as an information resource and referral center
• Participate in community events  
• Foster engagement with the Library through online social environment

Technology

• Provide an up-to-date online presence and portal to online and digital resources and materials

Outreach

• Cultivate partnerships and collaborate with local organizations and educational institutions, including but not limited to local agencies and organizations, institutions of primary and secondary education, academic libraries and higher-education institutions, and other public libraries

• Engage with patrons in a friendly, conversational way
• Foster a love of books and a culture of reading
• Promote collections and expertise
• Promote events
• Be part of the ongoing conversation among Ithaca businesses, organizations, and community members
• Expand our reach to share our resources and expertise among the greater library community

• Post courteously, respectfully, honestly, and accurately
• Personal opinions should not be expressed as library opinion
• Adhere to film and media policy guidelines:
  • Group photos of event attendees may be posted without express permission
  • Individual photos of staff or patrons will not be posted without express (written or verbal) permission

TCPL does not restrict the right of employees to use personal social media. However, the public may assume staff are speaking on behalf of the library. The following guidelines will help ensure that an individual is not posting on behalf of the library:

• Clearly identify your personal communication as separate from your role at TCPL when posting about TCPL
• Share only publicly accessible Library information
• Adhere to film and media policy guidelines:
  • Group photos of event attendees may be posted without express permission
  • Individual photos of staff or patrons will not be posted without express (written or verbal) permission

• TCPL staff reserve the right to remove any posts or comments that violate the Library’s Code of Conduct.
• The Library is not responsible for posts made by third parties, and those posts do not reflect the positions of Tompkins County Public Library.

Drafted by the Social Media Committee in 2019.

Revised by the Library Services & Policy Committee on August 8, 2019.

Approved by the Tompkins County Public Library Board of Trustees on August 27, 2019.

PDF Version of the Policy