[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-146264-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-146264-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","when-can-my-city-delete-a-facebook-comment-and-other-social-media-issues-legal-analysis","When Can My City Delete a Facebook Comment - and Other Social Media Issues - Legal Analysis","","Legal analysis of when a city may remove user-generated comments from social media pages while complying with First Amendment principles. The discussion defines social media’s governmental role in public outreach, explains forum categories used in constitutional forum analysis, and applies these concepts to citizen and council social media posts. It surveys key federal cases addressing deletion practices on Facebook and related platforms, concluding with broader considerations for municipal policies, risk management, and constitutionally consistent moderation.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/when-can-my-city-delete-a-facebook-comment-and-other-social-media-issues-legal-analysis/146264/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/when-can-my-city-delete-a-facebook-comment-and-other-social-media-issues-legal-analysis/146264.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Felix Montgomery","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-04","2026-08-26",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",19,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"Why do courts treat municipal social media pages as a First Amendment forum issue?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"First Amendment protections apply beyond physical public spaces. Courts analyze the type of government forum created or designated by a city to determine what restrictions on speech are allowed.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"What is the starting point for deciding whether a social media comment can be deleted?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"The analysis begins by identifying what type of forum the city’s social media page functions as. That forum classification guides whether deletion is constitutionally permissible.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"How do citizen-post cases like Hawaii Defense Foundation influence the deletion question?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"They evaluate whether a city’s action—such as deleting a Facebook comment—violates a user’s free speech rights. These cases help determine whether the city treated the page as a forum for public communication and how policies should be applied.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},146264,1787739616,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,111,115,120,123,127],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":102,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":107,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":108,"show_sort_weight":109,"slug":110},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":112,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},8,30,"research-report",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":117,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":119},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":118,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":122},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":124,"slug":126},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":129},"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":112,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":80,"read_time":144},549768064778,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","WHEN CAN MY CITY DELETE A FACEBOOK COMMENT?(and Other Social Media Issues)  \nHeather M. Lockhart Assistant City Attorney City of Austin  \n[heather.lockhart@austintexas.gov](heather.lockhart@austintexas.gov)  \nTable of Contents  \nI. What is Social Media? .........................................................................................3  \nII. Citizen Social Media Posts ..................................................................................3  \na. Hawaii Defense Foundation v. City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii ...........4  \nb. Quick v. City of Beech Grove ...........................................................................4  \nc. Packingham v. North Carolina ........................................................................4  \nd. PETA v. Texas A&M.........................................................................................5  \nIII. Council Social Media Posts .................................................................................6  \na. Knight First Amendment Institute v. Donald Trump........................................7  \nb. Davison v. Loudon County Board of Supervisors ............................................9  \nc. Karin Leuthy v. Governor Paul LePage.........................................................10  \nIV. Other Considerations ......................................................................................... 11  \nV. Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 13  \nI. What is Social Media?  \n“Social media” is defined as a form of “electronic communication through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content.”MERRIAM-WEBSTER (2018) . Social media has revolutionized how individuals interact with eachother. These networks have also revolutionized how elected officials interact with constituents. Many cities in Texas are using social media as a tool to communicate with citizens. Rather than waiting until a monthly council meeting to hear from citizens in the “public comment” section of the agenda, cities are able to constantly interact with citizens through their Facebook page, city Twitter account, or YouTube channel. To understand the proliferation of social media (and appreciate that ignoring usage by cities and their officials and staff is not an option), it is helpful to look at user statistics. In 2005, a mere 7% of American adults used social networking sites. Now, 68% of American adults are Facebook users. PEW RESEARCH CENTER, [http://www.pewinternet.org/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/](http://www.pewinternet.org/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/) (last visited May 15, 2018). While young adults (ages 18 to 29) are the most likely to use social media – 88% do – use among those 65 and older has increased exponentially since 2010. Today, 37% of those 65 and older report using social media, compared with just 2% in 2005. Id. Although this new technology can be a tool for cities to increase outreach and efficiency, social media use can create challenges for cities.  \nII. Citizen Social Media Posts  \nThe starting point for determining whether a social media post can be deleted from a city’s social media page is understanding what type of forum is created by the page. First Amendment protection is not just limited to physical forums. Rosenberger v. University of Virginia, 515 U.S. 819 (1995) . Courts recognize three types of government forums: the traditional public forum, the government designated or limited public forum, and the nonpublic forum. Traditional public forums are public areas, like streets or parks, that have “immemorially been held in trust for the use of the public and, time out of mind, have been used for purposes of assembly, communicating thoughts between citizens, and discussing public questions.” Hague v. Comm. for Indus. Org., 307 U. S. 496, 515 (1939) . A designated public forum 1 is a forum, like ","cbCaii5RQ4bseXoI","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaii5RQ4bseXoI","pdf",101801,13,"English","# Table of Contents\n# I. What is Social Media?\n# II. Citizen Social Media Posts\n## Hawaii Defense Foundation v. City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii\n## Quick v. City of Beech Grove\n## Packingham v. North Carolina\n## PETA v. Texas A&M\n# III. Council Social Media Posts\n## Knight First Amendment Institute v. Donald Trump\n## Davison v. Loudon County Board of Supervisors\n## Karin Leuthy v. Governor Paul LePage\n# IV. Other Considerations\n# V. Conclusion","[{\"question\":\"Why do courts treat municipal social media pages as a First Amendment forum issue?\",\"answer\":\"First Amendment protections apply beyond physical public spaces. Courts analyze the type of government forum created or designated by a city to determine what restrictions on speech are allowed.\"},{\"question\":\"What is the starting point for deciding whether a social media comment can be deleted?\",\"answer\":\"The analysis begins by identifying what type of forum the city’s social media page functions as. That forum classification guides whether deletion is constitutionally permissible.\"},{\"question\":\"How do citizen-post cases like Hawaii Defense Foundation influence the deletion question?\",\"answer\":\"They evaluate whether a city’s action—such as deleting a Facebook comment—violates a user’s free speech rights. These cases help determine whether the city treated the page as a forum for public communication and how policies should be applied.\"}]","When Can My City Delete a Facebook Comment - and Other Social Media Issues - Legal Analysis | PDF",33]