Social Media Comment Policy

Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media Comment Policy

Purpose:

The purpose of Bluffton Township Fire District's participation in social media is to enhance communication, collaboration, information exchange, and transparency from the Fire District to its residents. Bluffton Township Fire District uses social media to educate residents, learn about needs and concerns, contribute to relevant conversations, and promote Bluffton Township Fire District programs and services. Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media Comments Policy provides people who choose to comment on social media postings made by the Fire District with guidelines for engagement. Please note that some social media posts submitted by Bluffton Township Fire District on their social media sites may have comments disabled by utilizing the tools offered through each social media platform.

Click here to submit your comments to Bluffton Township Fire District.

Information Accuracy:

Users should know that the information available through Bluffton Township Fire District social media accounts may not be timely, accurate, or complete. Third-party comments and/or posts expressed on this site do not reflect the opinions or positions of Bluffton Township Fire District, or its officers, agents, affiliates, or employees, nor does Bluffton Township Fire District guarantee the accuracy of such information posted by members of the public. Furthermore, the publication of a comment or post does not imply endorsement of or agreement by Bluffton Township Fire District, nor do such statements reflect the opinions or policies of the Bluffton Township Fire District Board.

Monitoring:

Bluffton Township Fire District considers its social media accounts as moderated, limited discussion sites, and not public forums. While Bluffton Township Fire District makes reasonable efforts to monitor and/or moderate comments posted on its social media platforms, Bluffton Township Fire District cannot always respond promptly. Bluffton Township Fire District does not promise to respond to any or all comments, and if it chooses to respond, will only respond to comments during standard business hours. Do NOT use Bluffton Township Fire District social media pages for any type of emergency. For emergencies and/or to report a crime, please call 9-1-1.

Terms of Participation:

Transparent communication of Bluffton Township Fire District services and initiatives is essential to Bluffton Township Fire District. Since our community includes people of all ages and backgrounds, this disclaimer intends to seek that all posted comments are appropriate for all ages; courteous and respectful of others; and related to matters, activities, programs, policies, or operations relevant to Bluffton Township Fire District. Therefore, anyone who posts a comment to a Bluffton Township Fire District social media site must agree to the following terms of participation:

Users will treat others with respect
Users warrant that they own or have permission to post the information contained in their postings, including but not limited to video, photos, or digital reproductions and that the posting does not infringe on a copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights.
Users of this site do not retain any rights over their postings. Postings are open to the public, and any personal information posted constitutes a waiver of any rights to privacy or confidentiality.
Users must comply with all terms or statements of use of specific third-party services (YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Nextdoor, Neighbors, and LinkedIn). Bluffton Township Fire District reserves the right to report any violation to the particular service provider following the third party service's policies.

Prohibited Comments and Posts:

Bluffton Township Fire District reserves the right to delete any or all comments. Ordinarily, moderators will not remove a comment or post based on a person's or third party's opinion or viewpoint. The below (including but not limited to) types of comments/posts are prohibited on Bluffton Township Fire District social media sites and are subject to removal by the Fire District:

Posts and comments that contain language that is considered defamatory, offensive, threatening, and harassing.
Posts or comments that target or disparage any race, creed, color, age, religion, gender, marital status, status with regards to public assistance, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation or content otherwise deemed inappropriate.
Posts or comments that are obscene or possess sexual content or links to lewd or sexual content.
Posts and comments that are spam or include links to other sites.
Posts and comments that violate any federal, state, or local law or advocate illegal activity.
Posts and comments that promote particular services, products, or political organizations.
Political comments or posts promoting, opposing, or advertising any person campaigning for election to a political office or promoting or opposing ballot propositions.
Posts must be related to items within the authority or jurisdiction of Bluffton Township Fire District
Posts and comments that infringe on copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property rights, unless posted with the copyright/trademark holder's consent.
Post or comments with personally identifiable information, including but not limited to, Social Security Numbers, home or business addresses, email addresses, or phone numbers.
Posts or comments with solicitations, solicitations of funds or advertisements, including promotion or endorsement of any financial, commercial, or nongovernmental agency; as well as, solicitations to commit, or speech integral to, criminal conduct.
Defamation (libel/slander)
Fraud
Posts or comments that contain information that could compromise the safety or security of the public, public officials, Bluffton Township Fire District employees, or public systems.
Posts or comments that include content that could compromise an ongoing investigation and/or public safety tactics.
Posts or comments with content that could violate the legal ownership interest of any other party. Intellectual property or proprietary information posted without the owner's permission or approval, including copyrighted or trademarked images or graphics and images not owned by the user.
Posts or comments that contain viruses or similar harmful programs, including spam and similar content.
Duplicate posts
Posts or comments that include embedded links to external websites or applications
Posts and Comments of a troll and/or automatic software programs such as bot accounts.

Violators of this policy may have their comments removed from the Fire Districts’s official social media platforms. Continued or egregious violations of this policy may prompt the Fire District to further restrict an individual’s commenting on official Fire District social media platforms.

Removal of Comments:

Bluffton Township Fire District reserves the right to delete comments and/or posts at any time.

Links by Other Entities to Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media Sites:

Entities and individuals linking to Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media sites should not in any way suggest that Bluffton Township Fire District has any relationship or affiliation with that organization or that Bluffton Township Fire District endorses, sponsors, or recommends the information, products, or services of that site.

Embedded content from Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media Sites on other sites:

It is unnecessary to get advance permission to embed Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media site content. Entities and individuals embedding content must not present Bluffton Township Fire District content as their own or otherwise misrepresent Bluffton Township Fire District's Social Media site content. Furthermore, they shall not misinform users about Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media site content's origin or ownership.

Embedded content from Bluffton Township Fire District Social Media sites should not in any way suggest that the Fire District has any relationship or affiliation with that organization or that the Fire District endorses, sponsors, or recommends the information, products, or services of that site. Bluffton Township Fire District reserves all copyrights in information published on its websites or social media sites.

Responsibility of Content:

Site administrators, writers, third-parties, and social media users are fully responsible for the content they submit. Users participate at their own risk and are personally accountable for their own comments, personal identifiers, and any information provided. Bluffton Township Fire District disclaims any liability for advertisements, videos, promoted content, posts, or comments posted by visitors to this page.

Liability:

Bluffton Township Fire District expressly disclaims liability for any viruses or other contamination of a user's computer system or other devices used to access Bluffton Township Fire District's social media platforms. Bluffton Township Fire District does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by users on this site is correct. Bluffton Township Fire District disclaims any responsibility or liability for any misstatement and/or misunderstanding on the users' part. Bluffton Township Fire District expressly disclaims liability for actions or decisions taken or not taken based on any or all contents of its social media sites. Bluffton Township Fire District disclaims any liability whatsoever for any loss (directly or indirectly) or damage resulting from reliance on such information.

E-Discovery:

The social media sites utilized by Bluffton Township Fire District (YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Nextdoor, Neighbors, and LinkedIn) are moderated online discussion sites and subject to South Carolina Public Records and e-discovery laws and policies. Please note that the opinions and comments expressed on the Bluffton Township Fire District social media sites do not necessarily reflect the opinions and positions of Bluffton Township Fire District, its officers, elected officials, or employees. If you have any questions concerning the operation of Bluffton Township Fire District Government social media platforms and the moderated discussion rules, please contact info@BlufftonFD.com