Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

Facebook blurs line of public, private

TOM BELL

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Staff Writer

PORTLAND — It should be no surprise that most Portland city councilors are embracing Facebook. If Nelson Mandela and Pope Benedict XVI can have Facebook pages, why not Councilors Kevin Donoghue, John Anton and their colleagues?

But unlike many high-profile Facebook users, who use their pages deliberately to promote themselves or their causes, Portland officials mix their personal lives with city politics, blurring the line between what's private and public.

Facebook makes it easy to blur the line. The social networking site combines the Internet's ability to broadcast to the world with members' ability to limit access to a chosen few.

Richard Thompson, Maine's chief information officer, said that when government officials use Facebook and other social media, they may unintentionally break Maine's right-to-know law, which requires that public policy decisions be made in public.

In some ways, Facebook is like a private club, allowing members to ''de-friend'' people at any time. It's also like a party, in that people sometimes can overhear others' conversations.

Giving more people access to a page increases the chances that one of them will copy a posting and share it.

''It can get viral like that,'' Thompson said. ''My first advice to anyone, whether they are state workers or my grandkids: Don't put anything on there you won't want the world to see.''

Thompson conducted a session on social media last week during the Maine Municipal Association's annual convention at the Augusta Civic Center. His office is drafting guidelines for state workers and officials who use social media, including Twitter and MySpace.

''Social networking is here to stay,'' Thompson said. ''We need to figure out how to use this best in the government's workplace. For as many reasons we have to be careful about it, it's a powerful tool for communicating with citizens.''

In Portland, Anton recently experienced the porous nature of his Facebook privacy controls.

He posted an e-mail that Mayor Jill Duson had sent him. Duson found out about the posting when one of Anton's Facebook ''friends'' -- a Portland Press Herald reporter -- told her about it.

Anton, who initially reacted by saying his privacy had been violated, later concluded that he was wrong to have had any expectations of privacy on Facebook. He also blocked the reporter's access to his page.

''As we work through the issues posed by electronic communications, we must presume that what we post is public,'' he said in an interview. ''To the degree I was upset by that, I have only myself to blame.''

Of Portland's nine city councilors, six have Facebook pages: Anton, Donoghue, Duson, Dan Skolnik, Dory Waxman and David Marshall.

Skolnik rarely posts anything. Waxman focuses on personal issues. Duson avoids discussing policy, although she posts items that might appeal to her political base, such as photos of her attending the Portland Gay Pride Parade and Festival.

Marshall is a light user who occasionally writes about city issues.

Anton posts frequently, mixing thoughts about city policy -- such as explaining the purpose of Portland's Housing Replacement Fund -- with humorous riffs on rock music, pop culture and himself.

With 1,321 friends, Donoghue is the council's most prolific Facebook user, and has done the most to explore its utility for communicating with constituents -- and winning votes.

He posts meeting announcements: ''CDBG Meeting tonight @ 7pm at City Hall. What projects do we need in D1?''

And he gets replies quickly: ''How about sidewalk so kids can walk to school? Enough giving to private entities that can't raise their own money.''

Donoghue is running for re-election against Charles Bragdon (1,242 friends), who writes about his campaign and posts photos of campaign events.

Donoghue also promotes himself, with such things as postings of endorsements.

Thirteen of Donoghue's friends responded to his post asking what they would tell a reporter who was working on a story about public officials using Facebook. Most said they see Facebook as a communication tool that makes politicians more available to constituents.

''It's a fabulous medium,'' wrote Brad McCurtain, who owns a coffee shop in Monument Square, ''because not only do we know that you've received our comments/questions, but everyone else gets to read what we and others write and how you (or any other politician ) respond what could be more transparent than that!!''

But unlike a public meeting at City Hall, which is open to anyone, councilors' sites are open to only a tiny fraction of the city's voters, said Michael Starn, communications director for the Maine Municipal Association.

When elected officials use Facebook to ponder policy -- which Portland city councilors sometimes do -- they must make sure they aren't creating policy outside the open meeting process, Starn said.

Moreover, statements that elected officials make on social networking sites can be viewed as public, and officials must keep records of communications to comply with the right-to-know law.

''These things are great in terms of technology and communication tools,'' Starn said, ''but I don't think they are without danger.''

Keith Luke, Westbrook's director of economic and community development, said he won't create a Facebook page because it would make it harder for him to maintain a professional distance from political issues.

If a local group of activists invited him to be a ''fan,'' for example, his decision to join up or not would be seen as a political message, he said.

He said Facebook is useful for politicians who want to get elected. But once they're elected, it can be risky.

Luke said technology is changing so fast that lawmakers are struggling to catch up.

''We have to conduct official business in public,'' he said, ''and the definition of what's public is being blurred.''

Staff Writer Tom Bell can be contacted at 791-6369 or at:

tbell@pressherald.com