The Washington Spectator User Agreement
The washingtonspectator.org website is operated by the nonprofit The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. (the "Foundation"), which also publishes the newsletter The Washington Spectator. The Foundation provides washingtonspectator.org to you subject to the terms of this User Agreement. By registering with or using the washingtonspectator.org site (the "Site"), you accept and agree to this User Agreement. This Agreement explains the terms and conditions which apply to the use by you of the Public Concern Foundation Sites (defined below) and any other subscription product or service offered for sale by The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. and/or its affiliates (collectively, "The Public Concern Foundation"). The right to use any product or service offered by The Public Concern Foundation is personal to you and is not transferable to any other person or entity.
1. Definitions "The Public Concern Foundation Sites" means all areas and any subscription or other paid products and services offered or available on the interactive online service operated by The Public Concern Foundation on the internet. The Public Concern Foundation Sites consist of information services and content provided by The Public Concern Foundation, affiliates of The Public Concern Foundation and third parties. The term "Community Areas" means the bulletin boards, chat rooms, forums, comments sections and other user participatory areas on the Public Concern Foundation Sites.
2. The Public Concern Foundation has the right at any time to change or discontinue any aspect or feature of the Public Concern Foundation Sites including, but not limited to, the Community Areas, content, hours of availability, and equipment needed for access or use. Such changes, modifications, additions or deletions may be effective immediately upon notice thereof, which may be given by means including but not limited to, posting on the Community Areas a revised version of this Agreement or notification by electronic mail. Any use by you of the Community Areas after such notice shall conclusively be deemed to be acceptance by you of such changes, modifications, additions or deletions. You agree to review the terms and conditions of this Agreement periodically to be aware of such revisions.
3. Use of the Public Concern Foundation Sites and the Community Areas
The Community Areas shall be used for lawful purposes only. No material shall be posted on or transmitted through the Community Areas which violates or infringes in any way upon the rights of others, which is unlawful, threatening, abusive, defamatory, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, vulgar, obscene, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable, which encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, gives rise to civil liability or otherwise violates any law. No conduct shall be undertaken that, in The Public Concern Foundation's judgment, restricts or inhibits any other user from using or enjoying the Community Areas. Advertising or commercial solicitation may be posted on or transmitted through the Community Areas but only with The Public Concern Foundation's express prior approval and only if the advertising or commercial solicitation complies with all conditions imposed by The Public Concern Foundation, Inc.
The Public Concern Foundation Sites and the Community Areas contain copyrighted material, trademarks and other proprietary information including text, software, photos, video, graphics, music and sound, and the entire contents of the Public Concern Foundation Sites are copyrighted as a collective work under the United States copyright laws. Public Concern Foundation is the owner of the copyright in the entire Public Concern Foundation Sites. The Public Concern Foundation owns a copyright in the selection, coordination, arrangement and enhancement of such content, as well as in the content original to it. Each third party content provider owns the copyright in content original to it. You may not modify, publish, transmit, display, participate in the transfer or sale, create derivative works, or in any way exploit the content of the Public Concern Foundation Sites or any portion of it. Except as otherwise expressly permitted under copyright law, you may not copy, redistribute, publish, display or commercially exploit any material from the the Public Concern Foundation Sites without the express permission of The Public Concern Foundation and the copyright owner. In the event of any permitted copying, redistribution or publication of material from the Public Concern Foundation Sites, no changes in or deletion of author attribution, trademark, legend or copyright notice shall be made. You acknowledge that you do not acquire any ownership rights by downloading copyrighted material.
You shall not upload, post or otherwise make available on the Community Areas any material protected by copyright, trademark or other proprietary right without the express permission of the owner of the copyright, trademark or other proprietary right. You are responsible for determining that such material is not protected by copyright, trademark or other proprietary right. You shall be solely liable for any damages resulting from any infringement of copyright, trademark or other proprietary right, or any other harm resulting from any uploading, posting or submission.
You hereby grant to The Public Concern Foundation and its respective affiliates worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, perform and display any message posted in the Community Areas and/or any e-mail sent by you to The Public Concern Foundation (in whole or in part) and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, media or technology now known or later developed.
You may not select or use a member name or e-mail address of another person with the intention of impersonating that person; use a member name or e-mail address of anyone else without authorization; use a member name in violation of the intellectual property rights of any person; or use a member name that The Public Concern Foundation considers to be offensive.
You shall provide The Public Concern Foundation with accurate, complete and updated information provided by you at the time of registration.
The Public Concern Foundation Sites contain links to other Web sites, resources and advertisers. The Public Concern Foundation is not responsible for the availability of these external sites nor does it endorse or is it responsible for the contents, advertising, products or other materials made available on or through such external sites. Under no circumstances shall The Public Concern Foundation be held responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage caused or alleged to have been caused to a user in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services available on such external site. You should direct any concerns to such external site's administrator or webmaster.
You shall be responsible for obtaining and maintaining all telephone, computer hardware and other equipment needed for access to and use of The Public Concern Foundation Sites and Community Areas and all charges related thereto.
The foregoing provisions of this section are for the benefit of The Public Concern Foundation, its affiliates, third party content providers and licensors, and each shall have the right to assert and enforce such provisions directly on its own behalf.
The Public Concern Foundation has carefully designed the Public Concern Foundation Sites with the purpose of delivering certain content to users in a particular format and with a particular appearance. No third party shall have the right to utilize the content of the Public Concern Foundation Sites in any way that interferes with that purpose. In particular, The Public Concern Foundation prohibits any party from displaying the content on the Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites in any format where third party advertising or other materials that The Public Concern Foundation did not authorize is viewed or viewable together with The Public Concern Foundation's proprietary content.
4. Monitoring The Public Concern Foundation has the right, but not the obligation, to monitor the content of the Community Areas to determine compliance with this Agreement and any other operating rules that may be established by The Public Concern Foundation from time to time. The Public Concern Foundation shall have the right in its sole discretion to edit, refuse to post or remove any material submitted to or posted on the Community Areas. Without limiting the foregoing, The Public Concern Foundation shall have the right, but not the obligation, to remove any material that The Public Concern Foundation, in its sole discretion, finds to be in violation of the provisions hereof, otherwise objectionable or stale. Notwithstanding this right of The Public Concern Foundation, users shall remain solely responsible for the content of their messages. You acknowledge and agree that neither The Public Concern Foundation nor any of its affiliates shall assume or have any liability for any action or inaction by The Public Concern Foundation with respect to any conduct within the Community Areas or any communication or posting on the Community Areas.
5. Disclaimer of Warranty; Limitation of Liability
YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT USE OF THE COMMUNITY AREAS AND THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. NEITHER THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC., ITS AFFILIATES NOR ANY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, THIRD PARTY CONTENT PROVIDERS OR LICENSORS WARRANT THAT THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE; NOR DO THEY MAKE ANY WARRANTY AS TO THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM USE OF THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES OR AS TO THE ACCURACY, RELIABILITY OR CONTENT OF ANY INFORMATION, SERVICE OR PRODUCTS PROVIDED THROUGH THE SITES OR THE COMMUNITY AREAS. THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES AND THE COMMUNITY AREAS ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS," "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OTHER THAN THOSE WARRANTIES WHICH ARE IMPLIED BY AND INCAPABLE OF EXCLUSION, RESTRICTION OR MODIFICATION UNDER THE LAWS APPLICABLE TO THIS AGREEMENT.
THE DISCLAIMERS OF LIABILITY CONTAINED IN THIS SECTION APPLY TO ANY DAMAGES OR INJURY CAUSED BY ANY FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DELETION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER VIRUS, COMMUNICATION LINE FAILURE, THEFT OR DESTRUCTION OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, ALTERATION OF, OR USE OF RECORD, WHETHER FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORTIOUS BEHAVIOR, NEGLIGENCE, OR UNDER ANY OTHER CAUSE OF ACTION. YOU SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION IS NOT LIABLE FOR THE DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF OTHER USERS OR THIRD PARTIES AND THAT THE RISK OF INJURY FROM THE FOREGOING RESTS ENTIRELY WITH YOU.
IN NO EVENT WILL THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION OR ANY PERSON OR ENTITY INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING OR DISTRIBUTING THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES OR OUT OF THE BREACH OF ANY WARRANTY. YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY TO ALL CONTENT ON THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES AND/OR THE COMMUNITY AREAS. THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION'S LIABILITY TO USERS, IF ANY, SHALL IN NO EVENT EXCEED THE TOTAL AMOUNT PAID TO THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION.
THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION NEITHER ENDORSES NOR IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE OR STATEMENT ON THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES, NOR FOR ANY OFFENSIVE, DEFAMATORY OR OBSCENE POSTING MADE ON THE COMMUNITY AREAS BY ANYONE OTHER THAN AUTHORIZED OGDEN PUBLICATIONS INC. EMPLOYEE SPOKESPERSONS WHILE ACTING IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY YOUR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH EITHER THE CONTENT ON THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES AND/OR ANY POSTINGS ON THE COMMUNITY AREAS. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO EVALUATE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION, OPINION, ADVICE OR OTHER CONTENT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES AND/OR THE COMMUNITY AREAS. PLEASE SEEK THE ADVICE OF PROFESSIONALS, AS APPROPRIATE, REGARDING THE EVALUATION OF ANY SPECIFIC INFORMATION, OPINION, ADVICE OR OTHER CONTENT, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO FINANCIAL, HEALTH, OR LIFESTYLE INFORMATION, OPINION, ADVICE OR OTHER CONTENT.
OTHER THAN ITS OWN PRODUCTS, THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION DOES NOT ENDORSE, WARRANT OR GUARANTEE ANY PRODUCTS OR SERVICES OFFERED THROUGH THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES AND WILL NOT BE A PARTY TO OR IN ANY WAY MONITOR ANY TRANSACTION BETWEEN USERS AND THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS OF PRODUCTS OR SERVICES. AS WITH THE PURCHASE OF A PRODUCT OR SERVICE THROUGH ANY MEDIUM OR IN ANY ENVIRONMENT, YOU SHOULD USE YOUR BEST JUDGMENT AND EXERCISE CAUTION WHERE APPROPRIATE. THE PUBLIC CONCERN FOUNDATION MAKES PRODUCTS OR SERVICES AVAILABLE ON THE PUBLIC FOUNDATION, INC. SITES WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OTHER THAN THOSE WARRANTIES WHICH ARE IMPLIED BY AND INCAPABLE OF EXCLUSION, RESTRICTION OR MODIFICATION UNDER THE LAWS APPLICABLE TO THIS AGREEMENT.
6. Indemnification You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless The Public Concern Foundation, its affiliates and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents from and against all claims and expenses, including attorneys' fees, arising out of the use by you of the Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites and/or the Community Areas.
7. Termination The Public Concern Foundation shall have the right to immediately terminate this Agreement with respect to any user which The Public Concern Foundation, in its sole discretion, considers to be unacceptable, or in the event of any breach by you of this Agreement. The provisions of Sections 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10 shall survive termination of this Agreement. 8. Trademarks
All trademarks appearing on The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites are the property of their respective owners.
9. Subscription Services; Products (a) Subscription Services. The Public Concern Foundation makes available to users certain online subscription services (both free and paid), and other paid services and products. The following terms and conditions shall apply in the event that you subscribe to any subscription service or services offered by The Public Concern Foundation on The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites (the "Subscription"): Subscription Terms. The Subscription will continue until The Public Concern Foundation receives notification of termination from you as described below. You authorize The Public Concern Foundation to charge to the credit card account designated during the registration process the current fees and charges for each term according to the subscription plan chosen by you. If you accepted an offer that included a free trial period, your credit card account will not be charged until after the end of the free trial period. If you ordered in response to a free trial period offer, you may cancel the subscription process and avoid a charge to your credit card account if cancellation is received before the free trial period expires. If you subscribed for a term of one (1) year or more, you will be notified by The Public Concern Foundation before the account designated by you is charged after the first term.
You are responsible for any charges associated to connecting to The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites, including but not limited to, any telephone line charges or any Internet access provider charges. You shall provide The Public Concern Foundation with accurate, complete and updated information as to your name and e-mail address and credit card account information provided by you at registration. Failure to do so shall constitute a breach of this Agreement.
Changed Terms. The Public Concern Foundation shall have the right at any time to impose, change or modify its fees and billing methods, or other terms and conditions applicable to your use of the Subscription or to impose new terms and conditions. Such changes, modifications, additions or deletions shall be effective immediately upon notice, which may be given by means including, but not limited to, posting on The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites a revised version of this Agreement or notification by electronic or conventional mail. If any such change is unacceptable to you, you may terminate your Subscription as provided below. Any use of the Subscription by you after such notice shall conclusively be deemed to constitute acceptance by you of such changes, modifications, additions or deletions. You agree to review the terms and conditions periodically to be aware of such revisions. You may also be subject to additional terms and conditions imposed by third party content providers in connection with third party content, software or services.
Termination. Either you or The Public Concern Foundation may terminate this Agreement at any time. Your only right with respect to any dissatisfaction with any terms and conditions of this Agreement, or policy or practice of The Public Concern Foundation in operating The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites and/or the Community Areas, content available through the Subscription or change therein, or amount or type of fees or billing methods, or change therein, is to terminate this Agreement by sending notice to The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 241; Oregon, Illinois 61061; by e-mail sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or by calling 1-866-949-5290, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EST.
Notice of termination will be effective upon receipt by The Public Concern Foundation Without limiting the foregoing, The Public Concern Foundation shall have the right to immediately terminate this Agreement with respect to any user which The Public Concern Foundation, in its sole discretion, considers to be unacceptable, or in the event of any breach by you of this Agreement. In the event that your account is terminated or canceled, no refund of any fees, including monthly membership fee, will be granted. The provisions of Sections 5, 6, 7, 8 and this Section 10 shall survive termination of this Agreement. Fees paid for any Subscription are paid in advance and are not refundable in whole or in part, provided, however, that in the event of termination by The Public Concern Foundation for any reason other than breach of this Agreement by you or termination by you in accordance with this subsection of this Agreement in which you identify the termination as resulting from changed terms, The Public Concern Foundation shall make a pro rata refund to you.
(b) Products and Other Services. With respect to products and services offered for sale by The Public Concern Foundation and third parties or through the The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites: you shall be informed of all terms of the offer, including but not limited to pricing, methods of payment, shipping and handling, credit card information, sales tax, return and refund policies and applicable privacy policies on the screen where you make the purchase.
10. Copyright Agent We respect the intellectual property rights of others, and require that the people who use The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites, or the services or features made available on or through The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites, do the same. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please forward the following information to The Public Concern Foundation's Copyright Agent, designated as such pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. - 512(c)(2), The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Attn: Copyright Agent, P.O. Box 241; Oregon, Illinois 61061; by e-mail sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or by calling 1-866-949-5290, Monday - Friday, 9 - 5:30 EST.
Your address, telephone number, and e-mail address; A description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed; A description of where the alleged infringing material is located; A statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; An electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; and A statement by you made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or are authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf.
11. Miscellaneous This Agreement and any operating rules for The Public Concern Foundation, Inc. Sites and the Community Areas established by The Public Concern Foundation constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersede all previous written or oral agreements between the parties with respect to such subject matter. This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict of laws rules. No waiver by either party of any breach or default hereunder shall be deemed to be a waiver of any preceding or subsequent breach or default. The section headings used herein are for convenience only and shall not be given any legal import.
