Pope Francis poses for selfies in St. Peter's Square on April 13 following the Palm Sunday service.
(Gregorio Brogia, Associated Press)
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Pope Francis poses for selfies. So does President Barack Obama.
But should a college graduate pose for a selfie while accepting his diploma during commencement?
Selfie Etiquette
The do’s and don’t of selfies, according to Emily Post’s great-grandson, Daniel Post Senning, a spokesperson for the Emily Post Institute and webmaster for emilypost.com as reported by ABC News.
Celebratory events: Sure. Senning thought the selfie snapped by Ellen DeGeneres at the Oscars was great.
Hospitals – Appropriate if it doesn't intrude on anyone's privacy. He approved of Miley Cyrus' recent selfie when she was hospitalized.
Funerals and in church – Avoid. Obama was criticized after snapping a photo with other world leaders at a memorial service for Nelson Mandela last year.
Traumatic events and accidents: Proceed with caution. People may take selfies to show their families and friends they are safe, but don't include anything that includes wreckage or a crime scene.
Public restrooms and other places where people can expect their privacy – Off limits.
Probably not, say college officials.
The president of Bryant University in Rhode Island received national attention after telling graduating seniors they cannot take selfies when they come onstage.
“I don’t think their mom and dad and grandma want to get a picture of them holding up their cell phone,” Ronald Machtley told the New York Times.
Last year, some Bryant graduates used their phones to take pictures of their big moment, and the commencement committee worried that this year everyone would do the same, slowing down the ceremony.
A professional photographer takes a photo of each graduate at Bryant University, Machtley said.
Such photos, available later for purchase, are taken at nearly all commencements.
Officials at northeast Ohio public and private colleges say they haven’t had problems with selfies at prior ceremonies and have not instituted any policies this year.
They said their presidents, like Machtley, have no problem posing with students after the ceremony.
But they are aware that today’s smartphone-dependent graduates will take photos and selfies as they march in for commencement and during the ceremony, which can last for hours.
“There is plenty of time for selfies throughout the day and it's a very common sight off stage,” wrote Baldwin-Wallace University spokeswoman Shawn Smith Salamone in an e-mail.
Graduates at Lorain County Community College will be instructed to leave personal items, including cell phones, with their families, said Tracy Green, vice president for institutional development in an e-mail.
“We also set up a photo platform near the stage for families to use to take their own photos,” she wrote. “Additionally, the College hosts a reception for all graduates and their families immediately following the ceremony that has a designated photo station, with a professional backdrop, for students to use for casual photos with LCCC’s President, Dr. Roy Church.”
But some college officials are embracing today’s social media savvy graduates and encouraging selfies – just not on stage.
“Graduates will have an opportunity while back in lineup to take a photo with a portable frame (it’s huge) and post to Twitter or Instagram,” Kent State University spokeswoman Emily Vincent wrote in an e-mail. “We plan on displaying the photos on the large screens in the ceremony hall prior to the start of the ceremony.”