In keeping with Sutton Free Library’s mission to serve the public by providing the opportunity to access information, knowledge, and ideas from a wide variety of sources, the library participates in various “social media” applications whereby library staff and community members can interact through virtual (Internet) communication. These resources, summarized below, allow access to the resources of Sutton Free Library without mandating a visit to the physical library. Sutton Free Library regards social media applications in the same way as its other information resources in accordance with its mission of serving Sutton’s needs for informational, educational, cultural, and recreational pursuits.

DEFINITION OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Social media is defined as any website or application which allows users to share information. Social media can include, but is not limited to, blogging, instant messaging, social networking sites, wikis, and posts to the library website. Examples of such sites are Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and various blogging sites like Blogger and WordPress.

PRIVACY

Sutton Free Library does not collect, maintain, or otherwise use the personal information stored on any third party site in any way other than to communicate library-related information with users on that site. Users may remove themselves at any time from the library’s “friends” or “fan” lists, or request that the library remove them. Users should be aware that third party websites have their own privacy policies and should proceed accordingly.

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Users are encouraged to protect their privacy by not posting personally identifying information, such as last name, school, age, phone number, or address.

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As hosts of a website and Facebook page, Sutton Free Library may wish to post pictures of a particular library activity/event. Before posting pictures, Sutton Free Library requires that a Media Release Form is signed by a parent or guardian of patrons up to the age of 18.

PARENTAL CONTROLS

As with more traditional resources, the Sutton Free Library staff does not act in place of, or in the absence of, a parent and is not responsible for enforcing any restrictions which a parent or guardian may place on a minor’s use of social media applications.

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COMMENTING

Comments, posts, and messages are welcome on Sutton Free Library social media sites. While the library recognizes and respects differences in opinion, all such interactions will be regularly monitored and reviewed for content and relevance (before publishing when possible). All postings which contain inappropriate comments will be removed. Whenever possible, a message should be sent to the other user explaining why the comment was removed. If inappropriate comments continue, the user shall be blocked from commenting in the future.

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Inappropriate comments shall include, but are not limited to:

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• Obscene or racist content

• Content that would be considered hate speech

• Personal attacks, insults, or threatening language

• Potentially libelous statements

• Plagiarized material or material under copyright protection

• Private, personal information published without consent of individual

• Comments totally unrelated to the content of the library, its mission, or its activities

• Hyperlinks to material that is not directly related to the discussion topic

• Commercial promotions or spam

• Organized political activity

• Photos, images, or other media that fall in any of the above categories

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LIABILITY AND PARTICIPATION

Sutton Free Library assumes no liability regarding any event or interaction that takes place by any participant in any library-sponsored social media, and does not endorse content outside of the pages maintained by the library and the posts created by Sutton Free Library staff in the course of their work duties. The library reserves the right to use any comments, posts, and messages on library social media sites for use in public relations and marketing materials. The library will remove any personal information from the comment/post/message such as last name, school, phone, or email.

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Sutton Free Library is not responsible for other people viewing or accessing personal accounts/profiles that are left open on computers in the library.

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Participation with Sutton Free Library’s social media implies agreement with all library policies, including its Social Media Policy and Computer Use and Internet Acceptable Use Policy, and the Terms of Service of each individual third-party service.

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Comments expressed on any of  Sutton Free Library’s social media platforms do not reflect the views or positions of the library, its Director, Staff or Trustees.

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By posting a comment or other content you agree to indemnify Sutton Free Library and its officers and employees from, and against, all liabilities, judgments, damages, and costs (including attorney’s fees) incurred which arise out of, or are related to the content that you post.

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Sutton Free Library reserves the right to monitor content before or after it is posted on all its social media sites, and to modify or remove any messages or postings that it deems, in its sole discretion, to be abusive, defamatory, in violation of the copyright, trademark right, or other intellectual property right of any third party, or otherwise inappropriate. Sutton Free Library also reserves the right to edit or modify any submissions in response to requests, feedback or other commentary.

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Notwithstanding the foregoing, Sutton Free Library is not obligated to take any such actions, and will not be responsible or liable for content posted by any subscriber in any forum, message board, or other area within the library’s social media.

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If a user does not agree to these terms, they are not to use the provided services.

SUTTON FREE LIBRARY'S SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

The official website and social media accounts for Sutton Free Library shall be created and maintained by the Library Director.

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In all cases, the official library website should be the place where information and content is stored/hosted. Social media accounts should link back to the official website for access to information whenever possible.

The Library Director will use her/his professional judgment to insure that all information released via the official website and social media is accurate and appropriate. Communication via websites and social media accounts should be treated in the same manner as any other written, verbal, or electronic communication. If you would not disseminate the information at a public meeting, to a newspaper reporter, or face-to-face with a resident, then it should not be disseminated via website or social media.

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Extra care should be taken to moderate and/or maintain social media accounts that allow comments from the general public to be posted on the library’s official page or site. The Library Director may offer simple factual corrections but will not engage in debate over the merits of a library policy. In all instances involving negative comments, the other user will be invited to express their concerns directly in person or by phone to the Library Director and/or the Library Board of Trustees.

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ONGOING USE EVALUATION

The role and utility of social media in relation to the goals and purposes of the Library will be evaluated periodically by the Sutton Free Library staff and Board of Trustees, and may be terminated at any time without notice to subscribers.

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Adopted by the Trustees of Sutton Free Library, December 4, 2012.
Updated by the Trustees of Sutton Free Library, March 5, 2019.

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