Social Media Policy

The Washington Post (“The Post”) recognizes that Social Media is an important platform for employees to
connect with family, friends and colleagues around the world. However, using Social Media also presents
certain risks and carries certain responsibilities, especially for employees of a media organization that must
always uphold its journalistic integrity and objectivity. To assist you in making responsible decisions about
using Social Media, The Post has established these guidelines for the appropriate use of Social Media.

This Policy applies to all managers, supervisors and employees of The Post. Newsroom employees have
additional responsibilities when using Social Media, as set forth in The Washington Post’s Guidelines for
Digital Publishing. This policy does not supersede those guidelines. Managers, supervisors or employees
authorized to speak “on behalf of” The Post on Social Media, as defined in this Policy, must adhere to
these guidelines, as well as any supplemental guidelines created by The Post.

Guidelines on Social Media Use

The following guidelines are not exhaustive but are designed to help employees recognize and avoid the
risks of engaging in certain Social Media activities where the employee is identified or is publicly known as
an employee of The Post in his or her social media profiles. For purposes of these guidelines, Social Media
includes publicly communicating or posting information or content on the Internet, including to your own
or someone else’s Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, LinkedIn pages, or web sites. This policy does
not cover private communication such as direct person to person messages or private family Facebook
groups.

Ultimately, you are responsible for what you post online. Before creating and posting online content,
consider the risks that are involved. Keep in mind that, if you identify yourself as a Post employee, are
publicly known as a Post employee, or talk about The Post on Social Media, everything you post is a
reflection of The Post. This means that social media postings should not adversely affect the integrity of
The Post’s journalism, adversely affect your job performance or the performance of your coworkers, or
otherwise adversely affect The Post’s legitimate business interests. For newsroom employees, nothing in
this policy is designed to impact or limit their coverage or social media postings that are permitted under
the newsroom’s Digital Publishing Guidelines.

Don’t speak on behalf of The Post without authorization: Unless you are authorized to speak “on behalf
of” The Post on Social Media, do not post content that states or suggests that you are authorized to
communicate on The Post’s behalf. “On behalf of” means representing the official positions or views of The
Post or any Post department (for example, the way a Public Relations or Communications professional
might). Speaking on behalf of The Post about The Post’s content, services or products, without authority to
do so, could compromise the integrity of The Post’s journalism, cause reader or customer confusion about
The Post’s products, or result in the dissemination of inaccurate information.

Be transparent and take responsibility for your personal opinions: If you choose to identify yourself as a
Post employee and are not authorized to communicate on behalf of The Post, you should clearly state that

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your opinions are your own and not those of The Post. Never represent that you are a spokesperson for
The Post unless you are authorized to speak on behalf of The Post. When expressing your personal
opinions on Social Media, it is best to include a disclaimer such as “The postings on this site are my own
and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Post.”

Don’t post Proprietary or Confidential Business information: Social Media sites should never be
considered private. During the course of employment, employees may have access to The Post’s
Proprietary and Confidential Business Information. All employees have a responsibility to maintain the
security of Proprietary and Confidential Business Information and to keep it completely confidential. For
purposes of this Policy, Proprietary and Confidential Business Information includes, but is not limited to,
The Post’s news sources, customer information, subscriber information, advertiser information, vendor
information, systems, trade secrets, intellectual property, non-public and internal documents such as
financial reports, budgets or training materials, documents referencing possible mergers, acquisitions or
other business transactions, business plans and strategies, employees’ personal health information, and
social security numbers, banking information and credit card numbers.

Respect property rights: Avoid using any of The Post’s brand names, logos, or other intellectual property in
a way that could cause confusion about The Post’s services or products or convey maliciously false
information. Respect the intellectual property, trade secret, privacy, and publicity rights of The Post and
others, and comply with intellectual property and privacy laws. Revealing trade secrets, misusing
trademarks or copyrighted materials, or engaging in similar business-related misconduct could violate
intellectual property laws and result in liability to The Post.

Avoid maligning The Post’s and its customers’ products and services: Employees who identify themselves
as Post employees in their social media profiles must not engage in any Social Media activity that
disparages The Post’s products and services or could cause The Post to incur any liability to its competitors,
advertisers, subscribers, vendors or other third parties. Examples of the types of activities prohibited under
this section include:
• Making maliciously false statements about The Post or its agents, managers, supervisors,
employees, products or services;
• Disparaging The Post’s products or services (for example, the accuracy of Post content or the
effectiveness of The Post’s advertising); or
• Maligning the products and services of The Post’s advertisers, subscribers, competitors, business
partners or vendors, where doing so damages The Post’s business relationships or impairs the
employee’s performance of his or her work.

For newsroom employees, nothing in this policy is designed to impact or limit their coverage or social
media postings that are permitted under the newsroom’s Digital Publishing Guidelines.

Comply with Post Policies when using Social Media: When using Social Media, employees are expected to
comply with all Company policies, including The Post’s Policy Prohibiting Workplace Harassment, the Policy
Prohibiting Discrimination, the Conflict of Interest Policy, and the Information Security Policy. Violation of
these policies by posting content that is discriminatory, harassing, threatening, violent or otherwise
unlawful will not be tolerated.

Be respectful: Postings that disparage people or groups on the basis of their race, skin color, national
origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or other protected characteristics, or that are

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threatening, malicious, abusive, harassing, maliciously false, vulgar, obscene, or sexually explicit, are not
appropriate and violate Company policies.

Abide by the law: Avoid engaging in illegal or fraudulent activities on Social Media, and don’t encourage or
solicit others to violate the law.

Be internet savvy: Ensure that all links attached to e-mail messages or Social Media sites adhere to The
Post’s Information Security Policy. Avoid facilitating or distributing unsolicited bulk commercial e-mail,
SPAM, chain e-mails, pyramid schemes, viruses, corrupt files, hoaxes, or other harmful code or destructive
or deceptive material.

Social Media during work time: Other than incidental use, employees should refrain from personal use of
social media during their work time, unless using Social Media is an authorized part of your job (as it is for
journalists) or unless you are authorized to speak on behalf of The Post on Social Media as part of your job.

Asking Questions
If you have any questions or need clarification concerning this Policy, you should contact The Post’s Human
Resources Department.

Violations
Failure to comply with this Social Media Policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including
termination of employment.

Scope of Policy
This Social Media Policy is intended to comply with all federal, state and local laws, including Section 7 of
the National Labor Relations Act, and will not be applied or enforced in a manner that violates federal,
state or local laws. Nothing in this Policy is intended, or will be applied, to prohibit employees from
engaging in concerted activities that are protected under federal law, including discussions of wages, hours
or other terms and conditions of employment.

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