The Municipality of Clarington yesterday announced it has disabled all comments on its social media channels till the end of municipal elections scheduled to be held late October this year.
Durham Post has reported on a debate on whether comments in this election year should be blocked or not (see below).
The reason Clarington gave for its decision is that ‘campaign-related content and links to campaign materials’ continue to be posted in comment sections across the municipality’s social media channels.
Clarington said that monitoring and removing this content has required a growing amount of staff time outside regular business hours. This places additional pressure on municipal resources and redirects staff time from regular service delivery. For these reasons, Clarington is temporarily disabling comments on its social media channels until the end of the election period.
Social Media Hate Debate
Clarington has also been mired in a hate debate in this election year; an Islamophobic social media campaign relating to a custom related to Abraham’s sacrifice, is refusing to die down in Clarington despite investigations by authorities finding no proof of any violation (see below).
The municipality said it knows social media is one of the ways residents connect with it, ask questions and share feedback. However, it pointed out that the “the municipality has a responsibility to remain non-partisan and ensure that municipal resources are not used for campaigning during an election period, as outlined in Clarington’s Use of Corporate Resources for Election Purposes Policy”.
Clarington said it is “committed to fostering an informed and engaged community through its communication efforts. “Our social channels will remain active and will continue to share important municipal updates, public notices, service information, emergency communications, and links to helpful resources throughout the election period. Disabling comments is a temporary measure to ensure that our communication channels remain neutral, our policies are applied consistently, public resources are used responsibly, and all candidates are treated fairly throughout the election period.”
Other Ways To Connect
Clarington said residents can continue to connect with the municipality in several ways, including:
- Submitting customer service and service requests
- Participating in public engagement opportunities at www.claringtonconnected.ca
- Visiting www.clarington.net for news, updates and municipal information
“We appreciate residents’ understanding as we work to uphold the principles of fairness, neutrality and good governance throughout the election period,” the municipality said.
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