[Lnc-business] To the Members of the LNC re: social media

Thu May 25 18:57:50 EDT 2017

Agreed Daniel.  I'm looking forward to the recommendations.

Though in the interim, any LNC member should be able to know any volunteer
identity.

I do ask for specific examples of electioneering.  The group there often
speaks of concerns and today is literally the first time that has ever been
raised and if true, escaped the notice of all APRC members so I really
would like examples.  The puzzlement expressed by Whitney is shared by me.

And now that the committee is formed and working it behoovrs us to see what
they recommend and let them do the work we voted for them to do.

-Caryn Ann

On Thu, May 25, 2017 at 4:35 PM Daniel Hayes <danielehayes at icloud.com>
wrote:

> Andy,
>
> As the original maker of that motion it made sense at the time to have
> that big change while we were reviewing the whole thing.  It makes less
> sense to do now 5 or 6 weeks later.   The Social Media Process Review
> Committee is just getting underway and making this change now would
> potentially undermine any recommendations that the committee makes in
> August.
>
> For that reason,  I won't be co-sponsoring this motion now.  I also will
> vote "NO" if it does become active.
>
>
> Daniel Hayes
> LNC At Large Member
> LNC Social Media Process Review Committee Member
>
>
>
> On May 25, 2017, at 5:00 PM, Caryn Ann Harlos <carynannharlos at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> Hi Andy,
>
> ===The problem Alicia Mattson points to, of LNC members using the page to
> inappropriately and implicitly promote their own re-election to internal
> party office, is also very real and very inappropriate. ===
>
> Can you give specific examples?
>
> And I absolutely agree that identities of people being kept secret from
> the LNC itself is a problem if that is the case, it should be rectified
> immediately.
>
> -Caryn Ann
>
>
> On Thu, May 25, 2017 at 3:45 PM Andy Craig <pangloss90 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Dear Members of the Libertarian National Committee,
>>
>> As a concerned and active Libertarian, as well as a member of the "LP
>> Admins & Moderators" group for several years now, I write to you to *strongly
>> encourage* the adoption of the motion made by Alicia Mattson regarding
>> staff control over social media.
>>
>> The current process is, frankly, a trainwreck; and as a long-time member
>> I can testify that Alicia Mattson's complaints are accurate and, if
>> anything, only begin to describe the depths of the dysfunction.
>>
>> The Facebook "volunteers" (all of whom, to be sure, mean well and want to
>> help the party) operate without transparency, without accountability, with
>> no rules of order or meetings or votes or defined policies, and with *no* process
>> to even decide who is or isn't allowed to post on behalf of the party. It's
>> purely an ad-hoc self-perpetuating thing... replacing its own members as
>> they leave (or are purged) like a Soviet Politburo. The post-by-post
>> after-the-fact review by APRC has repeatedly proven itself an ineffective
>> paper tiger and unworkable in practice. It works on other matters-- the
>> website, the newsletter, email blasts, mailings, etc.- because then the
>> APRC only has to review the much smaller volume of public communications
>> made by or through the LNC's staff via those other LNC assets.
>>
>> Those who are granted this privilege of speaking anonymously on behalf of
>> the party, through this undefined ad-hoc process, have their identities
>> hidden *even from the LNC. *You might even say, behind a *veil of
>> secrecy* and with the members of the group under a *gag order* not to
>> identify who posted what.
>>
>> These are people who are speaking on behalf of the Libertarian Party, and
>> on behalf of the LNC, but the LNC is not even allowed to know their names
>> and their record of what sort of content they post? The LNC is not allowed
>> to make a decision about who is or isn't granted that privilege, or when
>> somebody has abused it in a way that justifies revoking it? Who, really,
>> exercises the control here over the party's branded public image?
>>
>> I note also the contradiction; between the LNC's apparent recent concern
>> for "transparency" on the Bylaws Committee--- whose members were openly
>> elected by the LNC, which derives its authority directly from our Bylaws
>> and reports to the Convention, which fully intends to solicit member
>> feedback in open session per RONR, and has the power to do naught more than
>> *propose* possible Bylaws Changes for the convention to vote on. The
>> contrast is stark between that and our self-organized, self-appointed
>> social media volunteers who every day *speak on behalf of the party*;
>> and have a long and frequent track record of bringing negative consequences
>> back on the LP through ill-considered, unprofessional, inaccurate, or
>> otherwise improper posts.
>>
>> The problem Alicia Mattson points to, of LNC members using the page to
>> inappropriately and implicitly promote their own re-election to internal
>> party office, is also very real and very inappropriate. Being rude to and
>> running off new volunteers is also a real and ongoing concern. Purges of
>> volunteers who in some way disagree or come into conflict with the
>> self-appointed gatekeepers-- again with no clear process for actually
>> making that decision, or any clear reasoning as to who put them in charge--
>> are not infrequent.
>>
>> For these reasons; and as somebody who could, right now, go post almost
>> effectively whatever I wanted on the "Libertarian Party" Facebook page... I
>> strongly urge you to adopt the proposed motion. This does not mean our
>> volunteers need go away, or can not continue to submit ideas and generate
>> content, but the final authority to approve a post in the name of the LNC,
>> should go to somebody who is chosen by and answerable to the LNC. It is a
>> matter of accountability, professionalism, and the LNC properly doing its
>> job of managing the affairs and assets of the national party.
>>
>> We would not let things be posted on LP.org, or published in LP News,
>> the way they currently are on the Libertarian Party's official Facebook
>> page; and yet things posted to the Facebook page are seen by a vastly
>> larger audience. Social media in this day and age is far too important for
>> the LNC to not exercise proper oversight and authority over how the party
>> is being represented online.
>>
>> Thank you for taking this feedback into consideration; and in particular
>> thank you to the Secretary for bringing this necessary and long-overdue
>> motion.
>>
>>
>> -Andy Craig
>>
>>
>>
>> --
> *In Liberty,*
> *Caryn Ann Harlos*
> Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska, Arizona,
> Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
> Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org>
> Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
> <http://www.lpcolorado.org>
> Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
> <http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org>
> Chair, LP Historical Preservation Committee
>
> A haiku to the Statement of Principles:
> *We defend your rights*
> *And oppose the use of force*
> *Taxation is theft*
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
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> Lnc-business at hq.lp.org
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>
-- 
*In Liberty,*
*Caryn Ann Harlos*
Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska, Arizona,
Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org>
Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
<http://www.lpcolorado.org>
Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
<http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org>
Chair, LP Historical Preservation Committee

A haiku to the Statement of Principles:
*We defend your rights*
*And oppose the use of force*
*Taxation is theft*
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