You are the editor-in-chief of your college’s student newspaper. For more than six months, you have been requesting authorization to set up a Twitter account for your newspaper.
“Good news,” says Professor Naylor, the faculty advisor for the newspaper, as she tells you that your request has been approved. She has supported the paper’s efforts to set up a Twitter account. “Here’s what I want you to do. Step 1: Learn the university’s policy on social media.” She pauses. “I don’t mean read it. I mean learn it.”
You nod and say, “Okay.”
“Step 2: Before I let you start, I want to see a statement from you and the editorial board about purpose and audience. Whom are we trying to reach through Twitter? And why? What are we trying to achieve? Include a code of conduct: the principles of professional behavior you think are most important.”
“You mean, from our own policy statement here?”
“If appropriate. But don’t limit yourself to our own policy statement. Check other universities, professional organizations, other newspapers.”
“Is that it?”
“No. It’s really important that we come off as professionals, but I don’t want you so scared you can’t write anything that anyone’s going to want to read. Include a section with guidelines on how to write interesting content.”
“Where would you start?”
“I’d start with Twitter itself. It’s got a really good how-to site for businesses.”
“Anything you can recommend about college newspapers?”
“Look up Sree Sreenivasan @Sree https://twitter.com/sree. He was with the Columbia University School of Journalism for over two decades. He’s the big dog on social media.”
Your Assignment
Once you’ve familiarized yourself with the case background, complete the assignment below. Your instructor will tell you how he or she would like you to submit your work.
1. Create a bibliography of 10 sites that you and the editorial board will study to learn about how to create and sustain a professional Twitter account for your newspaper. For each of the ten sites, write a paragraph describing how it can help you learn how to create and maintain a productive Twitter account.
2. Write a statement of 1,000–1,500 words responding to Dr. Naylor’s request. If your own college or university does not have a social-media policy for you to consult, search online for a statement from another university.
Reflecting on Your Work
Once you’ve completed your assignment, write a reflection about your work using the prompt below.