Over the past two weeks, the Associated Press has had to defend its decision to fire reporter Emily Wilder over pro-Palestinian tweets. Now it seems the news agency is ready to begin reviewing its social media policy to avoid another similar situation in the future, the New York Times reports.
The decision for the AP to take a look at its social media policy stems from more than 150 staff members publicly denouncing the firing of Wilder for violating that policy.
Ten newsroom leaders responded last week in a memo to its staff stating a plan to evaluate its guidelines. The leaders noted that formal groups would discuss ideas and make recommendations, and a committee of staff members would review the submissions by Sept. 1.
“One of the issues brought forward in recent days is the belief that restrictions on social media prevent you from being your true self, and that this disproportionately harms journalists of color, LGBTQ journalists, and others who often feel attacked online,” the memo said.
Any modifications to the social media policy would come up in the next round of contract negotiations with the union representing AP employees, the News Media Guild.
Eduardo Razo is the Assistant Content Editor for BNM, which includes writing daily news stories on the news media industry. He can be found on Twitter @eddierazo_ or you can reach him by email at eddie1991razo@gmail.com.
