Ward Blog Sites?

I was recently called to be the Ward Photographer and bishopric wanted me to create a Ward Blog/website/something to that extent for pictures from ward activities. Although I am perfectly capable to do so, I didn't know what the church's standpoint was on that and I want to make sure I don't overstep any boundaries. I don't know what information could/should be allowable to post and what to have in terms of privacy settings. Does anyone know of any wards that have something like this already or any thoughts on the matter? Thanks in advance!
-Jennifer

Caution! Caution!
Welcome to the forum, by the way!
If it were me, I wouldn't step outside of the directories photo abilities, and the bulletin board at the church. Anything more would be my own personal "facebook-ing" among "friends."

Thanks for the warm welcome. And yes, as soon as I heard about this I was like "uuuuuh... you want me to do what?" This is a can of worms waiting to be opened. Hence the S.O.S.

The LDS.org directory has photo capability, but has safeguards in place. Only the member, or an administrator (leader, website admin) can approve or place them. The member (or parent) has full control to allow or hide any photo or piece of info such as names, addresses, etc. I think it is all very carefully crafted, and for protection of the church, it's members, and you and your bishop.

And that doesn't even begin to peak into the "policy" and "handbook" battles about "unofficial ward websites..."

Yes, I do know the directory isn't the place for photo's of your ward party!

Yeah the bishopric definitely wanted me to help and encourage our ward to get their personal picture on the ward directory, but they were also throwing around the idea of having a ward blog or something. I said I'd look into it, but my fear is that someone will be offended that I took a picture of them at a ward activity and we know how those things can snowball. At this point I'm about to go back to them and tell them the (numerous) reasons why it's not such a great idea. But I at least wanted to do my part and research into it.

And if you'd like to point them to a specific Handbook reference, they can carefully review Handbook 2, Section 21.1.22 (under Official Church Internet Resources) which says in part:

Stake and ward Web sites may be created only by using the official Church Internet resources. Stakes and wards are not authorized to create other Web sites or blogs or otherwise have a Church-sponsored presence on the Internet.

Thanks for the official source! I've been looking for something like that. Case and point.

I like the idea of having a "ward photographer" to post snapshots from ward activities on a bulletin board next to the Bishop's office (and update them when new activites happen) but, like everyone else here, I understand that if it's going to be on the Internet then, somehow, it has to happen through the official ward web site tools that are available. You may add photos to items in the ward's "News and Information” section. There are certain restrictions but, within those limitations, something like what your Bishop wants may be possible.

aebrown wrote:And if you'd like to point them to a specific Handbook reference, they can carefully review Handbook 2, Section 21.1.22 (under Official Church Internet Resources) which says in part:

There is also another pertinent subsection (Members' Use of the Internet in Church Callings) that states

Individual members may create Web sites or blogs or make use of other appropriate Internet resources in their Church callings, provided they include a disclaimer such as “This is not an official Web site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” Members should also comply with the following guidelines:

• The Church logo may not be used or imitated.
• The name and contact information of the member who is responsible for the Web site should be included.
• Members should not state or imply that their Web site or activities are sponsored or endorsed by the Church.
• Church-owned artwork, music, or other materials should not be reposted unless such use is clearly authorized by the “Rights and Use Information” page of an official Church Web site or by the Church’s Intellectual Property Office.
• Photographs of other individuals or personal information about them should not be displayed without their consent.

Similar wording can be found in HB 1 17.1.24.
This would seem to suggest what your bishop has in mind is possible, but you do have to be careful. I would suggest having the bishop read these sections and then get together with you to decide if this is still something you want to pursue.

Besides having a ward photographer take pictures for the directory, which works great, we frequently leverage Costco to create collages for each activity.

You can use up to 30 pictures and they are super cheap $1.49 for a 10x12 or 8x12, $2.99 for 11x14 or 12x18 and then a bit more expensive for larger. Our bulletin board is full of photo collages from camps, activities and service projects. Fun way to share what is going on in the ward.

The collages are usually ready in 2 hours. Try this site: http://shop.costco.com/Photo-Center/Index .

As a test, I just created a news item on the "classic" ward site and added 16 photos from a ward activity. The pictures have to be small and the upload tool is a bit cumbersome compared to typical blogging tools... but it worked.

Since I don't know what the "new" ward web site design will be (I thought we'd have something new this year but...) I imagine there could be something even more useful in the near future for posting such material.

A lot of the problems come down to photo permissions. My wife is ward historian, and has spent ages getting consent for pictures to be included in the ward history - and that's probably only seen by a handful of people around the world!

I would urge caution in the widespread dissemination of photos of people who may well be unaware - and would otherwise potentially be unhappy.

Thanks crislapi for the additional "official" resources! And thanks everyone for your comments. You're all being very helpful!

mrrad wrote:I like the idea of having a "ward photographer" to post snapshots from ward activities on a bulletin board next to the Bishop's office (and update them when new activites happen) but, like everyone else here, I understand that if it's going to be on the Internet then, somehow, it has to happen through the official ward web site tools that are available. You may add photos to items in the ward's "News and Information” section. There are certain restrictions but, within those limitations, something like what your Bishop wants may be possible.

I checked with the Member Data Privacy group here to get their feedback on this topic. Here's their response:

"Individuals are encouraged to upload their own photos on LDS.org. However, if a ward or stake photographer would like to upload photos of members in their ward or stake, the member must understand how the photo will be used on LDS.org and agree to having the photo taken and included on the site. If a member chooses to permit the ward or stake photographer to upload a photo to LDS.org, this may occur only if the member made this choice without any pressure from ward or stake leaders.

Members are encouraged to upload a photo of adults for the household photo and are discouraged from uploading pictures of children.

In addition, “Stakes and wards are not authorized to create ….Web sites or blogs or otherwise have a Church-sponsored presence on the Internet” (Handbook 2: Administering the Church (2010), section 21.1.22)."

johnsonth wrote: Members are encouraged to upload a photo of adults for the household photo and are discouraged from uploading pictures of children.

I'm a little unclear here. Is it that members are discouraged from uploading pictures of children as the household photo, in the household photo, or altogether? That is, should we not upload pictures of our children under their own name?

Let me follow up for more clarity on that one. You're right that it seems odd to have a picture upload option for each family child while also discouraging members from uploading pictures of children.

johnsonth wrote: it seems odd to have a picture upload option for each family child while also discouraging members from uploading pictures of children.

Privacy is one concern, but safety is another.
Having the ability to post individual child photos in the directory has been debated since the new directory came on-line...and as yet seems to be left to parents and local leaders discretion. During my watch, we didn't do it. Here is an original discussion on the topic from March 2010:

primary kids pictures on ward website...Safe?