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Communications Guide ruler

The Georgetown Law Office of Communications disseminates news and information about the Law Center on the social networking sites Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/georgetownlaw) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/georgetownlaw).

These outlets serve as additional vehicles for faculty, students, alumni, staff and friends to follow happenings at Georgetown Law. We hope to create additional connections with the news media and other internal and external audiences and drive traffic to the Georgetown Law website.

All content on the Georgetown Law Facebook and Twitter pages is maintained by the Office of Communications. Content includes, but is not limited to, news from the Office of Communications, including press releases, media advisories, web stories, Georgetown Law in the News, Alumni in the News, Congressional Testimony from faculty members, event webcasts, and videos. Posts on other miscellaneous topics may also appear from time to time (i.e., publication of the alumni magazine, student achievements, new staff hirings, etc.)

General Guidelines for the Law Center

Creating a Social Media Profile

Prior to creating a social media profile on Facebook or Twitter, individual departments should develop sound business reasons/goals and seek approval from the senior administrator in their area.

Facebook pages created by a department on behalf of the Law Center must be created as "business" pages, where users have the option to "like" the page. They should not be created as groups or personal profiles.

Please consult mediarelations@law.georgetown.edu when choosing your Facebook username or your Twitter name, since it is important to remain consistent with the Law Center's branding guidelines. Twitter feeds are limited to 15 characters, so it is particularly important that these names be chosen carefully.

On Facebook, fill out location and contact information completely, and use a standard e-mail address (i.e., mediarelations@law.georgetown.edu) for contact information. Our publications department will work with you on visual branding elements such as photos and logos on both Facebook and Twitter. Please contact mediarelations@law.georgetown.edu when you are ready to create your pages.

Content

Direct links should be provided to online references and original source materials. Websites such as bit.ly, tr.im, and tinyurl.com should be used to shorten URLs on Twitter, which only allows 140 characters per posting. Although Facebook does not limit the number of characters, it has become common practice to shorten URLs on Facebook postings as well.

Please keep in mind that any content posted to a social networking website can be redistributed through the Internet or other media channels and may be viewed by the general public, and content that is deleted or modified may continue to exist in cyberspace. Additionally, be advised that Twitter messages (tweets) may appear in Google searches.

Departments are encouraged to repost (Facebook) or ReTweet (Twitter) items posted by the Law Center Communications Office when applicable.

Branding

Please refer to the school as "Georgetown Law." After that you may use "Law Center." Do not use the abbreviation "GULC" or variations of the name such as "Georgetown Law School," "Georgetown Law Center," "Georgetown University Law," etc. If you have questions about branding elements, please contact mediarelations@law.georgetown.edu.

Responses

Facebook has privacy settings which allow the administrator to control wall postings, comments, etc. Twitter does not have such settings. Judgments about replying to or deleting potentially offensive or objectionable postings should be made on a case by case basis.

General Guidelines

Social networking sites are relatively new to all of us and will likely present many opportunities for trial and error. If you have questions or are looking for general guidance, please contact mediarelations@law.georgetown.edu.

Use of other social media vehicles such as LinkedIn and blogs require the approval of a senior administrator, or possibly the Dean, and should be developed in consultation with the Communications Office.

Georgetown Law has also established a YouTube channel, which can be found here: http://il.youtube.com/georgetownlaw.

 

Helpful Websites

Twitter:

Facebook

Social Media