Embedded Files
Yes — but, as always with clearance, it’s complicated.
Social media posts can feel like the perfect way to make a scene feel current, real and instantly recognisable. A character scrolling Instagram, a news segment showing viral tweets, a detective looking through someone’s TikTok, a teenager’s group chat spilling across screens - these things feel baked into modern storytelling now.
But just because something is public, easy to screenshot, or already being shared by thousands of people online, it doesn’t mean it’s free to use in a TV show.
That’s the bit productions often underestimate.
A social media post might look like one simple asset, but from a clearance point of view it can contain several separate rights: the written text, the image or video, the username, the profile picture, music, comments, brands, memes, reposted material and identifiable people. Each of those layers may need a different kind of permission.
So the question isn’t really “Can we use this post?”
It’s more like: “Who owns every element of this post, what context are we putting it in, and can we get the right permissions in time?”
What counts as a social media post?
What counts as a social media post?
When people say “social media post”, they might mean:
Comments
Usernames and handles
Profile pictures
Memes
Screenshots of threads
Reposted content
A TikTok, for example, might include footage shot by the uploader, a song owned by a record label and publisher, a branded product in shot, a meme format borrowed from somewhere else, and identifiable people in the background.
That’s not one clearance. That’s a clearance soup.
Who owns the content?
Who owns the content?
Usually, the person who created the post owns the copyright in what they created.
The platform doesn’t suddenly own it just because it was uploaded there. Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X and the rest may have broad licences from their users to host and share content on the platform, but that doesn’t automatically give a TV production the right to lift it and put it in a drama, documentary, trailer, marketing campaign or streaming show.
So it’s easy to get caught out. “It’s online” does not mean “it’s public domain”.
“It went viral” does not mean “everyone can use it”. “A screenshot is fine, isn’t it?” No. A screenshot is still a copy.
What are the risks?
What are the risks?
The main issues to think about are copyright, privacy, defamation and moral rights.
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Copyright
Copyright
If you use a real post on screen, you are usually reproducing copyrighted material.
That could include:
The wording of the post
Any photos or videos
Artwork or graphics
Music in a video
Memes or reposted content
Memes are especially tricky because they often have multiple layers of ownership. The person who posted the meme may not own the original image, the original clip, the template, the caption format or the underlying joke.
Very fun for the internet. Less fun for E&O.
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Privacy and consent
Privacy and consent
Just because someone posted publicly doesn’t mean they have agreed to appear in your show.
This is particularly important if the person is identifiable, private, vulnerable, a child, or being shown in a sensitive context.
You also need to think about how the post is being used. Is it neutral? Embarrassing? Criminal? Sexual? Political? Linked to addiction, grief, health, money, family issues or anything else that might increase the risk?
Context matters enormously.
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Defamation
Defamation
If the post contains an allegation or false statement, your production may be repeating it by showing it.
Even if you didn’t write the original post, putting it on screen can give it a new life, a new audience and a new level of credibility. That is not something to casually screenshot and hope for the best.
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Moral rights
Moral rights
In the UK and Europe, moral rights can also come into play.
These include the right to be credited and the right not to have work treated in a derogatory way. It’s another reason not to assume that grabbing a post from the internet is a harmless shortcut.
Platform terms of service won’t save you
Platform terms of service won’t save you
A common misconception is:
“Well, they uploaded it to Instagram, so surely Instagram’s terms mean we can use it?”
Not really.
The platform may have permission to display, distribute or promote the content within its own service. That does not usually mean a third-party production company gets broadcast, streaming, promotional or worldwide rights.
Platform terms are not a production licence
What do you actually need to do?
What do you actually need to do?
If the production wants to use a real social media post, you need to break it down properly.
You’ll usually need to:
Identify who created the content
Work out whether they own all the elements in it
Contact the relevant rights holder
Get written permission or a licence
Get a contributor release if a person is identifiable
Clear any music, images, artwork, brands or third-party material within the post
Check the permitted media, territory, duration and context
This is also where timing becomes the real problem. With enough time, money and cooperation, lots of things are possible. But productions rarely have endless time, endless budget or endlessly responsive rights holders.
So you need to know early whether the post is essential, or whether it can be replaced with something safer.
Save time and money with workarounds
Save time and money with workarounds
Most of the time, the cleaner route is to recreate the feeling of social media without using real social media. That might mean:
Generic UI
Generic UI
Create a fictional interface that suggests a social media platform without copying Instagram, TikTok, X or Facebook too closely.
Fake usernames and accounts
Fake usernames and accounts
Use fictional names, handles and profile pictures. For prominent on-screen accounts, you may also want to register the usernames or domains so they don’t accidentally point to a real person.
Recreated posts
Recreated posts
Write original posts inspired by the story need, not copied from real posts.
Commissioned content
Commissioned content
Hire someone to create social-media-style photos, videos or comments from scratch, with contracts that give the production the rights it needs.
Stock or cleared content
Use pre-cleared images, videos or templates that mimic social media without creating a rights headache.
Fictional platforms
Fictional platforms
Sometimes the best option is to invent the whole thing. It gives the art department and graphics team more control, and it avoids tying the show to a real platform’s rules, branding and approvals.
What happens if you get it wrong?
What happens if you get it wrong?
The risks are not just theoretical.
Uncleared social media content can lead to:
Copyright claims
Privacy complaints
Defamation issues
Takedown demands
Expensive re-edits
E&O insurance problems
Delivery delays
Distribution refusals
And by the time those issues appear, the post is usually already embedded in edits, graphics, VFX, trailers, stills or marketing materials.
That is an expensive place to discover something was never cleared.
What about news, documentary, parody or background use?
What about news, documentary, parody or background use?
There are grey areas. News and documentary productions may have arguments around fair dealing or fair use, depending on the jurisdiction and context. Parody may also provide some protection in certain situations. Incidental inclusion may be less risky if a post is barely visible in the background.
But none of these are magic words.
They are legal arguments, not production strategies. You still need to assess the use carefully with your lawyer.
Real posts vs fake posts
Real posts can bring authenticity.
Fake posts bring control.
That’s usually the trade-off.
The more “real” you want something to feel, the more complicated and expensive it can become. If the post is editorially essential, then clear it properly. If it’s just there to make a screen look busy, don’t create a clearance problem you don’t need.
Summary
Summary
Yes, you can use social media posts in TV shows.
But don’t assume public means free. Don’t assume a screenshot avoids copyright. Don’t assume platform terms cover you. And don’t leave it until the edit.
Flag social media content early in scripts, think through the rights involved, budget for clearance where needed, and when in doubt, recreate rather than copy.
These links and suggestion may change over time. Always recheck the copyright status with your lawyer or clearance person. This page was created in May 2025Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash
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