Guidelines for WVU Social Media Use During an Emergency
It is critical that all West Virginia University social media accounts communicate uniform messages during a crisis. This keeps the campus community and beyond properly informed with consistent and accurate messaging.
Accordingly, all official University messages in a crisis will originate on the WVU Safety accounts — the WVU Safety and Wellness X account, @WVUsafety, and WVU Safety and Wellness on Facebook. Only the content posted on these accounts or on the main University accounts — @WestVirginiaU on X and Instagram, the West Virginia University Facebook page and @WVUToday on X — should be reposted or shared.
FOR THE STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING SOCIAL TEAM
The @WVUsafety X account and WVU Safety and Wellness on Facebook serve as the main source of official information on social media.
Therefore, when a crisis in the WVU Alert tier first arises, all scheduled posts should be removed to allow for a clear focus on the emergency at hand. Scheduled posts for @WestVirginiaU X and Instagram and the West Virginia University Facebook page should also be removed.
For Campus Warnings and Community Notices, scheduled posts on all accounts may continue as planned, though the team should use discretion. Depending on the severity of the situation, it may be necessary to remove scheduled brand awareness or fun posts, or posts that are not urgent or timely. The team should also ensure posts aren’t scheduled to post around the same time the Campus Warning or Community Notice is posted.
Throughout the crisis, the social media director or their designee should be in constant contact with the director of news communications or their designee for the latest information on the situation.
In certain cases, the director of news communications or their designee will take the lead on social media posts.
POSTING FOR WVU ALERTS
In the case of a crisis, University Police will craft and send WVU Alert messages, in coordination with the Strategic Communications and Marketing, Office of Communications, to notify the community of an emergency on campus. These notifications will be sent through text and email to those signed up for the service as well via the LiveSafe app and on social media.
During regular business hours, the social media director or their designee will manually post the initial WVU Alert to @WVUsafety on X and WVU Safety and Wellness on Facebook. During non-business hours, the director of news communications or their designee will manually post the initial WVU Alert to @WVUsafety on X and WVU Safety and Wellness on Facebook. This can be done via the platforms themselves or by using Agorapulse.
Any alerts sent following the first one, including the final message indicating the emergency has ended, will be manually posted to X and Facebook by the director of social media or their designee or — during non-business hours — by the director of news communications or their designee.
It is up to the discretion of the social media director and WVU social media team members as to what posts are shared on other Strategic Communications and Marketing-owned accounts.
As WVU Alerts are sent and as the social media designee receives information from the director of news communications or their designee, they will manually post the Alerts and/or new information to the @WVUsafety X account and the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook page.
For X, additional alerts or messages, including new information, should include “UPDATE:” at the beginning of the post. All posts throughout the crisis should be threaded to streamline news on the user’s feed. This should also help in showing the most up-to-date information to users.
For Facebook, additional alerts or messages, including new information, will be added to the initial Facebook post by editing the post. This will create a timeline of all alerts or messaging with the most recent update at the top.
Edits should be formatted like this: “UPDATE (time): Put the text alert here.”
Past alerts or messages and the initial WVU Alert should not be deleted from the post. An example of what the Facebook post would look like in a crisis is:
UPDATE (10:47 a.m.): This is the second update.
UPDATE (10:39 a.m.): This is the first update.
WVU Alert (10:30 a.m.): This is the initial alert.
To restore and maintain confidence and calm within the campus community, it is important to post new information periodically — at least every 10-15 minutes. Update messages should be coordinated with the director of news communications or their designee.
The following are examples of messages that can be used when no new information has yet been provided:
• Please continue to avoid the area. Emergency services personnel are on the scene.
• There is no new information currently. Continue to avoid the area.
• Emergency services personnel are responding to the situation. Please continue to avoid the area.
• The investigation is ongoing. Please do not spread misinformation. Official information will only come from @WVUsafety. Please continue to avoid the area.
• Continue to avoid the area. We will continue to update as we receive new information.
Other “filler” content should be developed, depending on the crisis. Only content from official social media accounts — @MonCoOEM or @Morgantown_PD, for example — may be reposted or shared.
All social media posts should do the following during a crisis or disaster:
• Calm the masses.
• Give information to the public.
• Give information to external news outlets.
• Clearly define commonly used safety terminology like shelter in place, all clear, etc. as these terms are used in Alerts.
• Control or “own” the conversation around a crisis.
• Provide off-site communication access should phone lines and internal servers be compromised.
Remember to always update the campus community when a crisis has ended. The final WVU Alert text should be manually posted to the X thread to close out the thread and added to the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook post about the crisis.
In the event that a crisis has caused significant negative impact to the campus community, it will be necessary to create posts that will facilitate calm and healing over a designated period. Topics that may be discussed could include mental and emotional assistance, counseling, hotlines and more.
MONITORING FOR WVU ALERTS
The social media team will monitor popular social media platforms during a crisis situation. Create searches for all references to WVU and the emergency situation at hand. Additionally, create similar searches that have a location parameter set up around Morgantown.
Searches may include terms like: WVU, WVU Alert, WVU emergency, WVU shooting, WVU bomb, etc.
Closely follow the interactions of the @WVUsafety, @WVUToday and @WestVirginiaU X accounts. Also monitor the comments on the WVU Safety and Wellness and West Virginia University Facebook pages. Keep an eye on popular meme social media pages and platforms we don’t traditionally use like Reddit and YikYak.
Note any specific social media posts that could be used to help in a crisis investigation. Copy the link to these posts and take a photo or screenshot of these posts as well in case they are deleted. Notify the UPD chief by email or phone at 304-293-3136. In addition, notify the executive director of marketing and the director of news communications or their designee.
If there is an obviously erroneous post that is receiving a large response on social media, the social media designee will work with the director of news communications or their designee to confirm it is unfounded and respond to try to calm the masses.
Engagement during a crisis depends on the situation, but it is discouraged in many instances. After a crisis, depending on the outcome and nature of the incident, it could be necessary to engage to make an effort to restore and maintain confidence and calmness.
After a crisis has ended, monitor the notifications of @WVUsafety and the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook page. If people are actively quote posting old alerts or updates, reply to these posts with an “all clear” message to ensure they know this situation has ended.
POSTING FOR CAMPUS WARNINGS AND COMMUNITY NOTICES
When the University releases a Campus Warning or a Community Notice, the director of social media or their designee will be made aware to post the release on the @WVUsafety X account and the Safety and Wellness Facebook page.
Since Campus Warnings and Community Notices are not sent through the WVU Alert texting and email system, it is always necessary to post these releases to social media to inform our campus community.
The posts should include a summary of the release and a link to read more — typically hosted on WVUToday, students.wvu.edu, or enews.wvu.edu.
Other University accounts — @WestVirginiaU X/Instagram story, @WVUToday on X, the main WVU Facebook page, @WVUStudentLife X, WVU Student Life Facebook, etc. — should share these posts when necessary, as determined by the social media director. Since Campus Warnings and Community Notices can vary in terms of content and severity, managers of these other University accounts should use discretion.
Subsequent updates may follow from the Campus Warning or Community Notice. In these cases, the post from the @WVUsafety X account should be threaded to the original announcement to keep all updates in one place. Similarly, an update should be added to the original WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook post, like in WVU Alert cases.
MONITORING FOR CAMPUS WARNINGS AND COMMUNITY NOTICES
While not as urgent, the social media team should still utilize monitoring tools when possible after a Campus Warning or Community Notice is released. They should use an X monitoring tool and monitor Facebook and Instagram notifications to watch for reactions, additional tips/leads and concerning posts. They should also look at platforms like Reddit and YikYak.
Utilize search terms related to the release and situation to find relevant social media posts. Follow the interactions of the @WVUsafety, @WVUToday and @WestVirginiaU X accounts. Also monitor the comments on the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook and the WVU Facebook pages.
Note any specific social media posts that could be used to help in an investigation. Copy the link to these posts and take a photo or screenshot of these posts as well in case they are deleted. Notify the UPD chief by email or by phone at 304-293-3136. In addition, notify the executive director of marketing and the director of news communications or their designee.
FOR OTHER UNIVERSITY SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGERS
During a crisis, all scheduled posts on social media scheduling programs should be unscheduled or deleted on all University-wide accounts. This will allow for a constant and consistent stream of news from official sources.
Any University-related social media accounts — those with reference to WVU or that are considered affiliated with the University — should refrain from posting their own messages. Instead, they should only share official updates from @WVUsafety on X or the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook. If they would like to refer their followers to those accounts for more information, they may do so by posting, “For official updates on the current campus emergency, follow @WVUsafety or visit emergency.wvu.edu.” Those who would like to share information on Instagram Story can share links or screenshots of @WVUsafety on X messages.
In long-running situations, the Strategic Communications and Marketing social media director or designee will send an email to the social media managers across campus and/or post to the WVU Social Media Managers Facebook group with information and reminders on what to do with their respective accounts. An email will be sent to the Key Communicators listserv to inform them as well.
Once there is an official University announcement that a crisis has ended, all University-affiliated social media accounts should end crisis communications. They can do so by reposting or sharing posts from @WVUsafety on X and the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook page or by posting an official University press release. They can return to regular posting as deemed appropriate.
GENERAL
When discussing information with media members and sending news releases, please include: “For the most up-to-date information on this situation, follow @WVUsafety on X.”
Do not rely on outside media reports in any crisis situation. Only official information received from the director of news communications or their designee should be posted during a time of crisis or disaster, and only posts from @WVUsafety on X or the WVU Safety and Wellness Facebook page should be reposted or shared.