“social media hygiene”

please Watch What You Post Online.

by sarah selip

Dear staffers, if you have your boss’s social media handle in your social media bio, you (and I can’t stress this enough) must watch what you post online. I can’t begin to stress this enough — in all shapes and forms, you are a representative of your representative or committee, an organization, a campaign, and so on. You are aligned with said political party if you post things relevant to your political beliefs.

Yes, you can delete a post, but don’t forget. Screenshots are forever. This goes for Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, etc..

The perfect example comes in the form of the early TPUSA influencers… you probably know where I’m going with this. The first thing that probably comes to mind is the girls who posted pictures in string bikinis with a Ronald Reagan quote or a #MAGA hashtag.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve vetted candidates for positions in past offices by judging the general gist of what they post online.

From my personal experience: I once rejected interviewing a girl for a press assistant position in my former boss’s (extremely) conservative office after I found thirst traps plastered all over her public Instagram. It didn’t fit the vibe of our office’s image. That sounds a bit judgmental, but the former boss was a pastor.

You have to be cognizant of what you post, what you have posted in the past, and what you consider posting.

What job do you have, and what job do you want?

One of my first high school papers hit on this subject. The prompt went something like this — “Should colleges consider rejecting applicants based on what they post on Facebook? Do you want to accept someone who posts pictures of them drinking underage or going wild at parties?”

I’ll let you answer that one for yourself. My college tennis coach kicked girls off the team for posting non-kosher things on their socials… in the mid-2010s.

Let’s fast forward a few more years with some baseline rules for how to handle social media during your first big boy/girl internship or job.

Rule #1: Don’t be stupid.

If you’re underage, don’t post pictures of you drinking online. You don’t know who the people who follow you know. Capitol Hill works in a “reference-based” system. If you see someone you know following someone applying for a job in your office on social media, there’s a good chance you will ask them about the candidate. And don’t forget, it’s way easier to see what someone is actually like by looking at the content they “like” or retweet online.

Rule #2: If you’re on the Hill, finding out who you work for is much easier than you think.

Most staffers I know don’t mention their boss’s name on LinkedIn. It just says “U.S. House of Representatives.” But, a thing called Legistorm exists — if you aren’t familiar, you type in a staffer’s name, and it gives you a rundown of their current office, who they worked for in the past, when they worked there, and how long. Not only are you representing your current office online, but also your former bosses.

Rule #3: Don’t argue with people online.

This speaks for itself. Don’t attack anyone online, whether it’s other staffers, members, or trolls. Anything you post online reflects your office, and unfortunately, you probably don’t know who is following you. Whether it’s your next Chief of Staff, constituents, or journalists.

Rule #4: Anything can go viral at any time.

Case in point: Aaron Fritschner, a Democrat staffer for Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA 8th District) posted a video of staffers playing beer pong at a hallway party during the COVID pandemic. Sure, that was a while ago, but it’s easy to identify the staffers in the video. It gained a lot of traction online from both sides of the aisle, and they were easy to identify. Hint: they weren’t wearing masks. Which side were they on?

When posting your own content, consider how many people have been caught red-handed with previous screenshots of social media posts or quote tweets.

Rule #5: Vet your own social media profile… all the way back.

A few things to note here:

If you’re working for a campaign and you attack your opponent online by retweeting anti-opponent content or posting your own, you won’t be considered in the office if said opponent wins.

Rule #6: Be careful about who you add to your “Close Friends” list.

Are they actually your close friend? Are they trustworthy? Would they rat you out? Food for thought, because again, screenshots.

Rule #7: You don’t have to post everything you think about online at all times.

To quote Mark Twain, “It’s better to be silent and thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.”

Friends, we call this sh*tposting for a reason. And most of the time, a sh*tposter doesn’t consider the ramifications of their sh*tposting.

We’ve all been guilty of this — look at your Facebook memories and see what you posted as a status 10 years ago. Cringe.

Rule #8: This is a no-brainer. Consider going private.

If you’re a comms person, boosting your boss’s social media posts on your own page probably makes more sense, but you have to be very careful about what else you post. Otherwise, go private, but still be mindful of your posts.

In this day and age, your identity is synonymous with your job. Watch what you post.