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Best Practices for Managing Social Media Records

Chad J. Doran, CRM

Arlington County Government

Chief Records Management Officer

Objectives

– Upon completion of this session, you will be able to:

Understand recent uses of social media in business, government, and society;

Identify recent research and trends that can be applied to managing social media records;

Identify published standards, reports, and guidance for managing Web 2.0 content as records;

Implement practical strategies for managing social media records within organizations.

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Technical Change

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Social Media Use Haiti Earthquake 2010

Use of Twitter to coordinate emergency responses, collect donations, and communicate

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Social Media Use

Organized to mobilize local communities to support a local causes

Local communities collaborating internationally and globally

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Socal Media Use

Pope Benedict’s first Tweet on Twitter

Social Media Use

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NASA's Mars Curiosity uses FourSquare Tips – first “check-in” on Mars

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President Obama answers citizen questions using Google+ Hangout

Social Media Use

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Interaction between Oreo and AMC Theatres on Twitter

Social Media Use

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Social Media Use

CDC's “zombie post” on the Public Health Matters Blog

Records Management and Open Government

“The backbone of a transparent and accountable government is good records management.

To put it simply, the Government cannot be accountable if it does not preserve – and cannot find – its records” (NARA, 2010) .

Social Media Records Framework

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Questions to determine record status:

1) Is the information unique and not available anywhere else? 2) Does it contain evidence of an agency's policies, business, mission, etc.? 3) Is this tool being used in relation to the agency's work? 4) Is use of the tool authorized by the agency? 5) Is there a business need for the information?

*If the answers to any of the above questions are yes, then the content is likely to be a Federal

record. (NARA, 2010)

Social Media Tools Creating Federal Records!

NASA used Twitter to broadcast that that the

spacecraft Mars Phoenix had discovered water on

Mars.

TSA’s Evolution of Security blog used to

provide travelers with useful tips and clarification

regarding controversial incidents involving airport

security

The Library of Congress uses Flickr as a

repository for over 3,000 public-domain,

copyright-free photos so that all citizens may

access and catalogue the content13

Social Media Records Challenges

Retrieved from: http://www.wired.com/insights/2012/11/3d-visualization-big-data/

Social Media Meets “BIG DATA”

Social Media Records Challenges

Question:

What happens when

Facebook is gone?

Source: http://www.cs.odu.edu/~mln/pubs/jcdl09/archiving-facebook-jcdl2009.pdf

Social Media Records Challenges

Social Media Records Challenges

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Question: What here is the record?

What should we capture?

Social Media Records Challenges

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Question:

How do we know what to retain?

Crowdsourcing

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While we are waiting for the auto-catagorization “silver bullet” there may be other alternatives…

Question:

Who can explain this picture ?

Crowdsourcing

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Crowdsourcing

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Without realizing it - researchers at Stanford

university are tackling one of the most challenging records

management problems!!

Crowdsourcing

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Disruptive Innovation

Disruptive Innovation

Christiansen’s characteristics of a disruptive innovation:

“cheaper, simpler, smaller, and, frequently, more convenient to use” than the current sustaining technologies (Christensen, 1997).

Disruptive Innovation

(Image Retrieved from: http://web.mit.edu/6.933/www/Fall2000/teradyne/clay.html)

Human Computer Interaction

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Human Computer Interaction

Social Mediais inherently usable by design…

Human Computer Interaction

Pictured here is a standard DOD 5015.2 RMA…

Who wants to populate these fields??

Human Computer Interaction

29http://old.sigchi.org/cdg/cdg2.html

• What can we learn from the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI)?

Data Visualization

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• Social Media Data Visualization

• How can we see our records in a different way?

Data visualization

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• Open source tools are available to analyze and visualize social media data

Standards Implications of web-based collaborative

technologies in records management (ARMA International, 2011)

– ARMA/ANSI International Standard

– Applicable to various organizational environments (public and private)

– Provides requirements and best practice recommendations related to policies, procedures, and processes for an organization’s use of Web 2.0/social media tools

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Studies How federal agencies can

effectively manage records created using new social media tools (Franks, 2011)– Identifies challenges, presents a

framework, and provides recommendations for managing social media records in federal agencies

Best practices study of social media records policies (ACT-IAC, 2011)– Explores and captures government

best practices of retention policies for social media used to support agency missions

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Studies New technologies, new challenges for

archival science: An annotated bibliography on social media and records (Shaffer, 2012)– Identifies various resources containing

information on social media and RM

Governing the social network: How U.S. federal department and agency records management policies are addressing social media content (Doran, 2011)– Provides analysis of RM policies and

framework for addressing social media in RM policies

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Reports

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A report on federal Web 2.0 use and record value (NARA, 2010)– Identifies characteristics of the

information that is found in web 2.0 formats and how those characteristics affect the value of the information

Social media: Federal agencies need policies and procedures for managing and protecting information they access and disseminate (GAO, 2011)– Identifies extent to which agencies have

developed and implemented policies and procedures for managing and protecting information associated with the use of social media

Reports

Gov 2.0 Taskforce: Project 9 report on preservation of Web 2.0 content (Australian Government Information Management Office, 2007)

– Australian Government Report

– Provides a framework for appraisal of Web 2.0 content, identifies emerging technologies for capture and preservation and makes recommendations on how to facilitate better use of Web 2.0 content.

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Regulatory notice 10-06: Guidance on social networking web sites (FINRA, 2010)– Provides guidance to organizations in

the financial sector on social media use and discusses recordkeeping implications

Guidelines for secure use of social media by federal departments and agencies (CIO Council, 2009)– Provides guidance to U.S. federal

departments and agencies on a number of technical issues related to social media (including implications for records management)

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Guidance

Guidance NARA bulletin 2011-02: Guidance on

managing records in Web 2.0/Social media platforms (NARA, 2011)– Provides guidance to U.S. federal

departments and agencies under the Federal Records Act

Social media, web-based interactive technologies and Paperwork Reduction Act (OMB, 2010)– Provides guidance to U.S. federal

departments and agencies under the Paperwork Reduction Act

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Department of Energy “Managing Social Media Records” Guidance Flowchart (DOE, 2010)

– Provides guidance to DOE staff members and contractors using graphical flowchart

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Guidance

Library of Virginia Records Management “Tips” on Social Media (LVA, 2013)– Responsibilities for managing

social media records under the VA Public Records Act

– Identifies tools that can be used to capture social media records

Records advisory: Preliminary guidance on social media (New York State Archives, 2010)– Guidelines intended to help local

governments and state agencies mitigate risks associated with the use of social media 40

Guidance

Practical Strategies

Review standards, studies, reports and guidance that apply to your specific organizational environment (government sector, private sector, etc.)

Review your organizational polices (RM and social media policy)

Ensure that organizational policies align with the recommendations in published standards, studies, reports and guidance

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Practical Strategies

Review and identify your organizational use (or planned use) of social media technologies (internal or external)

Ensure that your use and management of social media technologies aligns with recommendations in published standards, studies, reports and guidance

Continue to monitor changes to standards, studies, reports and guidance on an ongoing basis

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Conclusion

There are a number of resources that provide best practice guidance for the management of social media records

Apply recommendations in these resources to your organizational policies and use social media technologies

Continue to monitor for changes to these resources or newly published resources

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Questions?