Councillor Conduct

In which following the case of Cllr Franklin and the excellent work of Alan Collins, we look to see how a candidate – chosen at random – might be affected by Medway Council’s social media policy should they get elected.


We will take a look at some key social media terms and see if a ‘reasonable’ person would consider them abusive. This might be difficult, if the candidate is being unreasonable, or unwilling to view their behaviour as anything other than reasonable. And would be more likely to see this blog as an attack, rather than an opportunity to learn..

Having chosen Mr Lawrence at random, I looked at his tweets only since becoming a candidate for Medway Council. If you haven’t met Andrew, here are some tweets from that time period:


He’s supportive of his party leader.

And always ready to take advice.

Trolling

A troll is a person who starts quarrels.. to distract and sow discord.

https://twitter.com/MrAWJLawrence/status/1092113356524273664

… with the intent of provoking readers into displaying emotional responses.

… normalising tangential discussion…

Gaslighting

… seeks to sow doubt in a targeted individual…

… making them doubt their own perception…


… misdirection and contradiction…

… to destabilise the victim…

Digital Blackface

… depicting black people in negative ways…

… white people using GIFS to perform some kind of exaggerated blackness…

‘Safe Space’

Deriding a term that they have no interest in…

It isn’t about a safe space for the left. It’s about failing to respect that safe spaces are needed.

‘Kinder Gentler Politics’

Having provoked an emotional response for their own amusement or gain, they deny they are a troll. Which in itself they would deny is gaslighting. They then turn to this phrase only used when they want to highlight a negative reaction. Dismissing the concept or the individual.

Doxxing

Thankfully there is no evidence of this, nor should there be.

If you are a reasonable person and find that a councillor of any party or political persuasion has breached the social media policy, here is the complaint form.

How do you feel about councillors and candidates treatment of the public on social media?
How do you feel about councillors and candidates treatment of each other on social media?
How do you feel about our treatment of councillors and candidates on social media?
Leave a comment below, let us know on Facebook, or send us a tweet.

3 Replies to “Councillor Conduct”

  1. At least when someone tweets or posts in that style you can be left with no doubt about who and what they are. And can act and vote accordingly. The posters beliefs and motivations don’t disappear because we don’t see them. I’d rather they be seen, then voters can really see what is at stake when they cast or choose not to cast their votes.

    So let them tweet, and continue to call them out on their tweets. I am sure there will be plenty of young politicos who will in the future be writing of their regret (faux) in their resignation letters. Give ’em enough rope…

  2. LMAO so glad I don’t twitter, but if you haven’t argued with the BNP on Social Media then you might think this is trolling. If you haven’t had death threats or threats of being beaten up all because you want 140,000 tons of live TNT removed from a rusty WW2 shipwreck a mile off Sheerness , then you might think this guy is seriously annoying . Maybe the Bloggers of Medway Politics who have had a pop at me in the past (happy to be considered no threat to the voting public LOL) should consider standing themselves to get a real encounter with the views of the public as expressed by the ballot box. How about it lads ?

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