Tip Sheet For Social Media Usage by Dart Center For Journalism and Trauma

Read the Full article at http://dartcenter.org/content/social-media-practices#.U9p_qoBdJZQ.

In today’s world, social media is one of the most popular ways through which the public stays informed, particularly in breaking news situations and following traumatic events. At the same time, information disseminated through social media can be problematic, as misinformation can spread at lightning speed.

As a student journalist or college newspaper advisor or editor, it’s important to know basic practices for using social media for newsgathering and reporting on traumatic events. 

جب تک سو فیصد یقین نہ ہو آگے شئیر نہ کریں- اپنی سورس ضرور بتائیں کہ خبر آپکو کیسے ملی- بیک گراؤنڈ سورس، ڈیپ بک گراؤنڈ، آف دا ریکارڈ     

Don’t post unless you are 100% sure and are willing to stand behind your post if you are called into your editor or advisor’s office to provide evidence that the information is true.

نمبر وں کی دور سے زیادہ ضروری سب سے زیادہ صحیح ہے کیونکہ آپکی 
Don’t rush to be first! It’s better to be right even if it takes more time. The public will quickly lose their trust in you if you post anything inaccurate on social media platforms, especially during a traumatic event. Make sure you have vetted your information before posting it. If it takes you 15 minutes or an hour longer than it takes the rest, that’s okay. You can stand behind the post knowing that the information is accurate. 

If you don’t have the information, don't make assumptions. Only offer what you know. During breaking news or traumatic events, reporters can get caught up in assuming or predicting what happened or could happen. Avoid this at all costs. 

Be thoughtful about what you post. Remember that during traumatic events, people have a heightened sense of emotion and feeling. They can be impacted by how they receive information of what has occurred. Think carefully about how you write your post, what images or video you include, as well as what you redirect to via hyperlink.

Don't create unnecessary chaos or agitation. Situations can escalate quickly on social media and create an atmosphere of helplessness, grief, and chaos. Make sure that what you post on social media doesn't enter this realm as it doesn’t help anyone, least of whom those impacted by a traumatic event. As a journalist, you are there to inform and provide resources to the public, not to create unnecessary panic.

Your posts on social media have an impact. Just as a full-length story or broadcast can impact a community during a traumatic event, 140 characters or a sentence or two on Facebook can also have an impact. Research has shown that those exposed to traumatic news coverage can experience traumatic stress or that it can trigger emotions or feelings tied to trauma. Information posted on social media may seem fleeting, but it does remain on the digital platform forever and can have a lasting impact on the community.  

Be cautious and thoughtful about how you use the social media platform during traumatic events.

VERIFICATION PROCESS

Social media can provide a wealth of sources and information during a traumatic event, but you should be skeptical of what you come across just as you would with any typical source. Misinformation, rumors and lies disseminate quickly on social media platforms and can spread like wildfire. Here are some tips to help corroborate the information you find:  

• Reach out to the person behind the account. Ask to contact them via phone for follow up. Don’t just take their tweets and profile as fact. They could be a spambot or fake account.
• Google the name of the person and/or Twitter handle and evaluate the results.
• Review the person’s social media account – look at their posts, see how often they tweet, look at what they tweet about, see how many followers they have and who they are being followed by – these are cues that will help you assess the legitimacy of the person behind the social media account.
• Use tools like Pipl or Spokeo to verify identity
• Corroborate image information. Images can be made up, recreated from the past or manipulated, and then posted on social media during a traumatic event. Corroborate images with other sources to make sure they are legitimate. You can Google the image or use the following websites that help identify manipulations or fakes: FotoForensics or Regex