ROSS TOWNSHIP SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS POLICY
PURPOSE
Ross Township’s social media is intended to create an online space in which township
officials, staff and interested parties can interact with each other and can share information
about the Township. The opinions expressed by individuals using Ross Township’s social
media, except as specifically noted, are those of the individual authors. Views presented in
comments on Ross Township’s social media posts, tagged posts or photos, and other similar
mediums do not necessarily represent the views or policies of, or endorsement by, Ross
Township. POLICY
Ross Township’s social media is defined as any web application, site or account operated
by Ross Township. The following disclaimer pertains to all official social media accounts
used by Ross Township:
Disclaimer
In order to better serve the public, the Township maintains social media accounts as
tools for communicating with the public. Your activity on Township social media
accounts is governed by both the Township’s Social Media Policy and the security and
privacy policies of the third-party sites, as applicable. The views expressed in the
comments reflect only those of the comment’s author, and do not necessarily reflect the
official views of Ross Township. The Township reserves the right to remove, delete or
not allow comments that contain:
• Vulgar, abusive, profane, obscene, violent or pornographic content or language;
• Personal or obscene attacks of any kind;
• Offensive terms targeting individuals or groups;
• Threats or defamatory statements;
• Content that promotes, fosters or perpetuates discrimination based on race,
creed, color, age, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin;
• Information that may compromise the safety or security of the public, an
organization or an individual;
• Links to any site;
• Suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity;
• Spam-type posts, such as multiple successive off-topic posts by a single user or
repetitive posts copied and pasted by multiple users;
• Unsolicited proposals or other business ideas or inquiries;
• Promotion or endorsement of commercial services, products, or entities;
• Personally identifiable information that has been inappropriately posted;
• Conduct in violation of any federal, state or local law. Visit www.rosstwp.org for information on how to send official correspondence to the
Township. Any official policy, regulation or other information will be published on
www.rosstwp.org, whether or not it is simultaneously posted on a Township social
media site. Only the version published on an official Township website may be
considered official. If the Township “likes” or “follows” a third-party’s social media
account, this should not be construed as a Township endorsement of that third party. To view our entire Social Media Policy, please visit www.rosstwp.org. Removal, Deletion or Prohibition of Comments
If a Township employee believes that any comments posted on a Township social media
account qualifies for removal or deletion, the employee should immediately report the
comment to their department head. The department head, in consultation with the
Township Administrator, shall make the final determination as to whether the
comment qualifies for removal or deletion. Should the Township Administrator
determine any comment violates the third-party social media site’s Statement of Rights
and Responsibilities, the Township Administrator also reserves the right to report such
violation to the website administrator. Repeated or egregious violations of this policy,
as determined by the department head and Township Administrator, may result in
revocation of a violator’s right to access the Township’s official media sites
