Community Guidelines
314TV is North County's digital town square. A town square only works when people can trust what they read and feel safe speaking up. These guidelines keep it that way.
In an emergency, call 911. 314TV is not monitored in real time.
The four standards
1. Be real.
- Use your real name.
- Post about the community you actually live in.
- Don't pretend to be someone else, whether that's a person, an official, a city or an organization.
2. Be accurate.
- Share what you know first-hand.
- Say where information came from.
- If you're not sure, say so ("unconfirmed").
- If you got something wrong, correct it or delete it.
3. Be respectful.
- Disagree with ideas, not people.
- Criticize public decisions freely, but keep it civil.
4. Be local.
- Keep it about North County St. Louis: its people, its places, its government, its life.
Posting categories
| Category | Use for | Not for |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | Road closures, outages, weather hazards, lost pets, public-safety info from official sources | Accusing a named or pictured person of a crime; describing "suspicious" people by race or appearance alone |
| News | Things happening in your community, with sources where possible | Rumors presented as fact |
| Events | Public community events with a date, time and place | Private parties; repeated ads |
| Civic | Meetings, public comment periods, elections info, official announcements (with a link to the source) | Misstating what an official body decided |
Not allowed
- ✕Threats, violence, or encouraging harm to anyone
- ✕Harassment or bullying including piling on or targeting private individuals
- ✕Hate speech attacking people based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or age
- ✕Racial profiling in safety posts. Describe behavior, not appearance. If you post a description, it must be specific enough to actually help (clothing, vehicle, direction of travel), and never based on race alone.
- ✕Accusing identifiable people of crimes. Report crimes to police. Share only what official sources have made public.
- ✕Private information someone else's address, phone number, license plate, or photos of private individuals (especially children) without consent
- ✕Sexual content or graphic violence
- ✕Misinformation about elections, voting, public health or emergencies
- ✕Impersonation of a person, public official, municipality or agency
- ✕Spam and commercial promotion. Local businesses can share events and news. Repeated ads and sales pitches aren't allowed.
- ✕Content you don't have the rights to such as other people's videos, photos or articles.
- ✕Illegal activity including selling regulated goods
Public officials and candidates
Elected officials, candidates and public employees are welcome. So is criticism of their public actions.
Keep it about the work, not their families or private lives.
Election content must follow the same accuracy standard as everything else. Candidates may post about their own campaigns in the Civic category, a maximum of once per week per municipality.
Photos and video of people
- Get permission from people who are the clear focus of your photo or video, especially minors. Crowd shots at public events are fine.
- Don't film inside private homes without consent.
- Blur faces and license plates when they aren't the point of the story.
What happens if a post breaks the rules
| Severity | Examples | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Minor | Off-topic, wrong category, mild incivility | We edit or remove the post and send a friendly note |
| Moderate | Unsourced accusations, repeated spam, private info | We remove the post and give a formal warning. A second time means a 30-day posting suspension. |
| Severe | Threats, hate speech, impersonation, sexual content involving minors | Immediate removal and permanent ban. We report to law enforcement where required. |
Reporting and appeals
- •Report a post: use the Report button on any post, or email hello@314tv.org with a link.
- •Appeal a decision: email hello@314tv.org within 30 days. A different moderator reviews appeals.
We review reports within 48 hours. Threats of violence or immediate danger are prioritized.