I am really grateful for the TV Production company sharing this info. I think it's very responsible and necessary.
Advice to those participating in a TV Production
Social media now plays a significant role in any TV production as viewers enjoy interacting with each other while a programme is being broadcast. Platforms like Twitter and Facebook will often see hundreds, if not thousands of comments posted during transmission and while the vast majority will be positive, here are a few things to bear in mind:
1. It is often a good idea to be more mindful of activity on social media around the time your programme is being transmitted. We want you to enjoy the experience and not be too distracted by a possible influx of messages.
2. If you already have a social media presence, people may find your details, so be prepared to be contacted by the public. It may be a good idea to lower your profile during transmission, so we would recommend that you do this via your privacy settings.
3. You may receive negative as well as positive comments. This happens all the time and should not be taken too personally. Naysayers tend to be more prolific than people with positive comments.
4. Avoid engaging in negative conversation. Remember, everything you (and they) say is in the public domain. Heated debates or arguments on social media can easily get out of hand - adopt the attitude that if ignored, unkind people will normally get bored and stop.
5. Remember that potentially millions of people will read what you say, so do think twice before posting anything.
6. It may be tempting to engage in positive conversations with fans who compliment the programme or your part in it. However, it’s still best to keep these responses short and sweet unless you’re willing to invest a great deal of time and effort in forging social ‘relationships’. If your programme isn’t ongoing, then be aware that your interest may wane, but your fans may not and they will feel neglected if you suddenly stop communicating with them. Also, please consider reviewing anything you may have said in the past which you may want to remove, as well as being mindful about what you say in the future.
7. Avoid giving out personal information such as an email address or telephone number and making these publicly available on your profile. Remember, everything you post is out there in a very public domain, and there are many other secure ways for people to contact you if you so wish.
8. Report any negative comments you feel uncomfortable about to the relevant social media administrators.
9. Remember that your episode may be repeated in the future, which may spike your social media presence when you are not expecting it. We will do our best to let you know.
In light of this advice, I will be staying away from social media that evening and will choose what I respond to over the following days. 😊
Tips on how to interact with online communities
Social media networks can be great places for people to share opinions and engage with other people. There are, however, some precautions we should all take to make our time online safe and secure. Here’s a guide on how to do this. There’s also a guide to Facebook’s privacy settings to help you make sure no one sees photos you don’t want them to.
Contributing to an online conversation
Contributing to an online conversation can be exciting and rewarding when you connect with people who have a common interest, especially when those people have enjoyed something that you were part of the creation of, like a TV programme. However, other people may use this opportunity to say why they didn’t like it too. Being criticised is no one’s favourite pastime, so here are a few tips on how best to deal with potential criticism from online communities. The links below offer comprehensive information on the social networks.
Your Privacy Settings
If you are on Facebook, review your privacy settings so only people you know and trust can see the more private information about your life.
See Facebook’s FAQs here: https://www.facebook.com/help/393920637330807
Twitter tells you who can read each type of tweet here: https://support.twitter.com/articles/119138
Instagram also has its own set of community rules which can be found here: https://help.instagram.com/477434105621119/?ref=hc_fnav
Instagram Threads has separate privacy settings to Instagram itself: https://help.instagram.com/225222310104065
Tiktok tells you how to create a public or private profile, as well as general privacy guidelines here: https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/account-privacy-setti…;
If you decide to get involved in a discussion about a programme you are in, have fun but avoid saying anything you wouldn’t say face to face to a stranger.
Think Twice
Consider all your comments twice before posting. Reply in haste, regret at leisure. If someone has written something you find hurtful or irritating take time to think through your response, do you really need to respond? A quick retaliation could fuel an argument that might have been avoided. Consider anything you write to be permanent because it’s out there even if you’ve deleted it.
Play by the rules
All social networks have their own standards, look for ‘community guidelines’, ‘terms’ or ‘help’ – normally found at the bottom of the page.
https://www.facebook.com/terms.php
https://twitter.com/tos?lang=en
https://help.instagram.com/478745558852511/?ref=hc_fnav
https://help.instagram.com/769983657850450
https://www.tiktok.com/community-guidelines?lang=en
If someone else is breaking them, try to avoid a public confrontation and look for the appropriate report procedure on the website. 2
Block and ignore
You can block someone on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Instagram Threads and TikTok if you find their comments offensive or they’re spamming you. Learn how to do so here:
https://www.facebook.com/help/168009843260943
https://support.twitter.com/articles/117063
https://help.instagram.com/426700567389543/?ref=hc_fnav
https://help.instagram.com/616605623708734
https://support.tiktok.com/en/using-tiktok/followers-and-following/bloc…;
If it’s gone too far or you don’t want them to know you’ve blocked them.
Here is some further advice from Twitter and TikTok
https://support.twitter.com/articles/15794
https://support.tiktok.com/en/safety-hc/account-and-user-safety
Direct Messaging
Here’s some info about how direct messaging works on Facebook and TikTok: https://www.facebook.com/help/487151698161671/?helpref=hc_fnav
https://support.tiktok.com/en/using-tiktok/messaging-and-notifications/…;
It’s a private message, but bear in mind some people may talk about a private message in, (or copy and paste on) a public forum, despite it being bad etiquette and often against the site’s terms of use of the communication tool. It is also worth noting that if a new user is added into the message at any time they will have access to the full message history. On Twitter only people you follow can direct message you so you can control this too (see Block and Ignore above). On Instagram if you get sent an Instagram Direct message it will pop up as a request, which you can choose to ignore
Where to report abuse or spam
Below are links to where to report abuse on the major platforms -
https://en-gb.facebook.com/help/1417189725200547
https://help.twitter.com/en/safety-and-security/report-abusive-behavior…;
https://help.instagram.com/165828726894770
https://help.instagram.com/6602413966453273
https://support.tiktok.com/en/safety-hc/report-a-problem/report-a-video…;
Facebook – ADJUSTING YOUR PRIVACY SETTINGS - https://www.facebook.com/help/325807937506242
‘Who can see my stuff?’
To get to your privacy settings, click the circle question mark in the top right hand corner and then select ‘Privacy Check-up’. underneath “Who do you want to see your next post”- select “Friends” for all categories. This will make sure strangers can’t access your full profile page and all your personal information and that only people you know will be able view and respond to your posts.
After clicking next, please ensure that all your personal information including name, telephone number and e-mail are set to either ‘Only Me’ or ‘Friends’. After click next for the final time, you will be taken to your apps permission page. To ensure any information from apps or games you use is only accessible to you select ‘Only Me’ or, if you are happy to share app information with others, (for example shopping lists from Amazon) select ‘Friends’ 4
Who Can See My Future Posts?
Under ‘Your Activity’ make sure “Friends” is selected under the ‘Who can see my future posts?’ option– this makes sure that everything you post in the future will only be visible to people you know and not the public (Fig. 3).
Who Can Tag Me?
If you would like more control over who can tag you in posts and information that is put out by your friends then select ‘Timeline and Tagging’ in your setting menu, in this menu you can control who tags and sees your tagged posts.
The option to review before any post you are tagged in by default is disabled but if you enable it then you will be allowed to review any posts or pictures tagged by others before they appear on your timeline. 5
Who Can Look Me Up?
In the privacy section of your settings you'll see a setting for your email and a setting for your phone number (Fig. 6). Use the dropdown menu next to each setting to select who can look you up using that info. To ensure you can only be found by Facebook friends and your details are not listed on any external search engines like Yahoo or Google please ensure that you edit the first two settings and select ‘Friends’ and for the final setting ‘Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your Profile?’ select ‘No’. If this option is previously listed as ‘Yes’ this change may not occur instantly but within a few days your profile will be taken off the search engine listings.
Twitter – ADJUSTING YOUR PRIVACY SETTINGS - https://help.twitter.com/en/safety-and-security/how-to-make-twitter-pri…;
Privacy settings on Twitter are a lot more basic, login to your account and select your profile picture in the top right hand side (Above the tweet button) and select ‘Settings’.
Select ‘Settings and Privacy’.
It’s the ‘Privacy and Safety’ settings here that you’ll need to amend. Click Protect My Tweets to match the screengrab below:
Save the changes at the end, then you’re good to go on Twitter.
Instagram:
Instagram works best on mobile or tablet, you can log in to an account via a desktop computer also but you will not be able to make these changes. If you have a personal Instagram account, then you can change your account to a Private Account which means only people you approve can follow you on Instagram.
For Instagram, we recommend you do this on mobile or tablet. Go on your profile and select the 3 lines in the top right-hand corner of your screen. Then click settings, bottom right.
Scroll down to ‘Account privacy’ and there’s a toggle switch to switch between On / Off to On. 7
Threads on Instragram:
Threads is an app from Instagram where you can post threads, reply to others and follow profiles you’re interested in. Threads and replies can include short pieces of text, links, photos, videos or any combination of them.
People can also follow you to see your threads and replies in their feeds and from your profile. Who can see your posts is determined by your profile’s privacy setting.
Reels on Instragram:
Reels are video posts on Instagram. Who can see and share your reels can be changed through your account's privacy settings:
- • For public accounts: Anyone on Instagram can see and share your reels. People may see your reels in places such as Feed, the Reels viewer, Explore, and audio, effect and hashtag pages. Anyone on Instagram can record a reel using your original audio or text. Anyone can remix your reel, unless you turn off remixing in your account settings or on individual reels.
- • For private accounts: Only your approved followers can see and share your reels. When someone shares your reel, only your followers will be able to see it. No one will be able to record a reel using your original audio or text, or remix your reel.
Note that reels you share will appear in the Reels section on your Instagram profile. Who can see your profile also depends on your account's privacy settings.
Remove a preview from your profile grid
1. Tap or your profile picture in the bottom right to go to your profile.
2. Tap the reel you want to remove.
3. Tap in the top right, then tap Remove from profile grid.
Removing the preview from your profile grid won't affect the availability of the reel on feed or your profile's reels section. If you want to re-add the preview, you'll need to re-upload your reel.
TikTok:
To make your TikTok account private, go to your profile page and select the setting option on the top right-hand of the page. On the "Settings and privacy" page, tap Privacy. That takes you to the Manage account page. Toggle the switch for Private Account. On this page, you can also control other safety and privacy features, such as who can send you comments and direct messages, and who can do a duet with you. Using the Friends setting or turning those features off completely limits contact with strangers.
Choose who can view your videos
To change the privacy setting on a new post: 1. Create your video. 2. On the Post screen, choose who can view your video. You can choose Everyone (only for public accounts), Followers (only for private accounts), Friends, or Only me. To change the privacy setting on a video you already posted: 1. In the TikTok app, go to the video you'd like to update. You can find your videos on your Profile. 2. Tap the More options button on the side of the video. 3. Tap Privacy settings at the bottom. You may need to swipe left. 4. Below Who can watch this video, choose who you'd like to allow to watch. You can choose Everyone (only for public accounts), Followers (only for private accounts), Friends, or Only me. 9
Snapchat:
If you have a personal Snapchat account please ensure you review your friends list, there may be several people who you’re no longer in contact with. Remember that posting to your ‘Story’ makes your content visible to all who follow you, depending on your privacy settings. Even by sending direct Snaps it is still possible for the receiver to screenshot so please be careful about what information you share.
To amend your privacy settings, press the profile picture icon in the top left, then press the gear icon in the top right. When you scroll down you will be able to see a section called ‘Who can… Contact Me/View My Story/See My Location/See Me In Quick Add’. It’s a safe bet to look through these and change them to what you’re comfortable with. For example, you can make your story public, but set ‘Who can contact me’ to friends only. You will probably want to set ‘See my location’ to ‘Only Me’, so your followers can’t see where you’re updating your story from.
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/account_privacy
Please ensure you review all of the content on any YouTube accounts. If there are any other videos that could be deemed as unsuitable or that you do not want in the public domain, please set these as Private or delete from your channel.
Disable comments on a YouTube video: Log into your account https://www.youtube.com/account_privacy 10
Click the circular letter in top right-hand corner and choose Creator Studio. Then click on Settings (the cog icon).
Click onto ‘community’ Under the sections labelled on your new videos and on your channel, select Disable comments:
Click on Save Changes to apply your new settings.
