Request for Comments: Grapevine Use of Social Media Icons | July 27, 2011

Last Updated on September 6, 2019 by Area 53 Web Team

Dear Area 53 Members,

Please read the attached emails (see below) from the Area 15 Delegate and our Trustee Pam R. and get back to me with your thoughts. You can leave a comment at the end of this message (be sure to click on Read more …). I am also pasting in the response from Don M. the AA Grapevine Chair regarding the action taken by the GV board.

Yours in Service,
Glen P.
Delegate, Panel 61 Area 53
Central and Southeastern Ohio
740.983.6693 (h)
740.571.1193 (c)


To All,
As you may or may not have heard, the grapevine began receiving several letters and emails of anonymity concerns regarding the presence of a couple icons (Twitter and Facebook) on AAgrapevine.org

Several suggestions were made that the icons be removed until the AAGV board has a chance to have a further discussion at its upcoming July board meeting.

The AAGV board, via email poll, agreed to take this action. Our Executive Editor/Publisher has confirmed that our web development provider has removed the links.

We have already scheduled this as an agenda item at our meeting.

In Service,
Don Miller
AAGV Chairperson


Friends,
For the last two weeks, I have been inundated with emails from Delegates and AA members regarding the new GV website which links to Facebook and Twitter. I am passing this on simply as an FYI. It was forwarded by the SE Trustee who sits on the GVB and who has requested it be taken down. Ward Ewing has been notified regarding the fellowship concerns of affiliation and “marketing/solicitation.” Just wondering what your thoughts are?

I’ll see you this weekend in Indiana for the ECR Convention.

Warm Regards,
Pam R., East Regional Trustee


Hello Delegate friends,
I am communicating with each of you with whom I have had some personal contact rather than sending to all Delegates. I believe that our Grapevine Board has had a significant error in judgment.

I am not sure if you or other Delegates outside of the Southeast Region are aware that the Grapevine website now has social networking site links. When the links are clicked, you have the opportunity to share/follow AAGrapevine.org on your Facebook or Twitter home page.

When shared, the link posts the name of AAGrapevine.org on your home page and gives a description of it*, including saying it is a magazine journal of Alcoholics Anonymous.

The GVB voted 5-2 to post these links, with the Southeast Regional Trustee El N and Albin Z in opposition. The GV Executive Editor and the GVB Chairman are standing firm that it’s okay to leave these on the website and don’t seem to understand what the big fuss is about.

Our Grapevine Conference Committee Chair, Jennifer D., is communicating in detail with the GVB Chairman, Don M., who has agreed to discuss this topic at the Board meeting this month. However, so far GVB nor the Executive Editor have agreed to remove the links until the discussion can take place. *Upon looking at the links again this morning, it seems they have removed the descriptive text that goes along with the link. However, the follow information is the default that would post to your Wall when you share it.

I urged my Area at our Assembly this past weekend to email requests and concerns to Ward E., asking for action by the GSB in the absence of action by the GVB. But, we need more than just the Southeast Delegates and Area members expressing concern. I hope that some or all of your Areas are just as concerned about this serious breach in our Traditions as we are.

Thank you for your consideration on this topic and please let me know how you feel about these actions.

Love in Service,
Kathy G.
Delegate Area 15 Panel 61

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