Privacy Policy

Last Updated: July 2022

The American Independent is a project of True Blue Media LLC, a for profit company whose mission is to compare and contrast progressive and conservative solutions to America’s public policy concerns and to educate the American people and the nation’s leaders on the results of that research. This Privacy Policy is designed to help you understand how The American Independent (“Am. Independent”, “we”, “our”, “us”) collects, uses, and shares your personal information.

SCOPE
PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT
HOW WE USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
HOW WE DISCLOSE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
YOUR PRIVACY CHOICES AND RIGHTS
SECURITY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
RETENTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
CHILDREN’S INFORMATION
CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
OTHER PROVISIONS
CONTACT US

1. SCOPE

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information processed by us, including on our websites, applications, and other online or offline offerings. To make this Privacy Policy easier to read, our websites, applications, and other offerings are collectively called the “Services.”

2. PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

The categories of personal information we collect depend on how you interact with us, our Services, and the requirements of applicable law. We collect personal information that you provide to us, personal information we obtain automatically when you use our Services, and personal information from other sources such as third-party services and organizations, as described below.

Personal Information You Provide to Us Directly

We may collect the following personal information that you provide to us.

Subscriptions. We collect your email address when you subscribe to one of our Services.

Your Communications with Us. We may collect personal information, such as name, email address, phone number, or mailing address when you contact us through the Services, apply for a job, or otherwise communicate with us.
Social Sharing Features. We and others who use our Services may collect personal information that you submit or make available through our interactive features (e.g., social media pages). Any personal information you provide using the public sharing features of the Services will be considered “public,” unless otherwise required by applicable law, and is not subject to the privacy protections referenced herein. For more information about the purpose and scope of data collection and processing in connection with social sharing features, please visit the privacy policies of the entities that provide these features.
Job Applications. We may post job openings and opportunities on our Services. If you reply to one of these postings by submitting your application, CV and/or cover letter to us, we will collect and use your personal information to assess your qualifications.

Personal Information Collected Automatically

We may collect personal information automatically when you use our Services:

Automatic Data Collection. We may collect certain personal information automatically when you use our Services, such as your Internet protocol (IP) address, user settings, MAC address, cookie identifiers, mobile carrier, browser or device information, location information (including approximate location derived from IP address), and Internet service provider. We may also automatically collect personal information regarding your use of our Services, such as URLs of pages visited, information about the links you click, the types of content you interact with, the frequency and duration of your activities, and other information about how you use our Services.
Cookies, Pixel Tags/Web Beacons, and Other Technologies. We, as well as third parties that provide content, advertising, or other functionality on our Services, may use cookies, pixel tags, local storage, and other technologies (“Technologies”) to automatically collect personal information through your use of our Services.

Cookies. Cookies are small text files placed in device browsers that store preferences and facilitate and enhance your experience.
Pixel Tags/Web Beacons. A pixel tag (also known as a web beacon) is a piece of code embedded in our Services that collects information about engagement on our Services. The use of a pixel tag allows us to record, for example, that a user has visited a particular web page or clicked on a particular advertisement. We may also include web beacons in e-mails to understand whether messages have been opened, acted on, or forwarded.

Our uses of these Technologies fall into the following general categories:

Operationally Necessary. This includes Technologies that allow you access to our Services, applications, and tools that are required to identify irregular website behavior, prevent fraudulent activity and improve security or that allow you to make use of our functionality;
Performance-Related. We may use Technologies to assess the performance of our Services, including as part of our analytic practices to help us understand how individuals use our Services (see Analytics below);
Functionality-Related. We may use Technologies that allow us to offer you enhanced functionality when accessing or using our Services. This may include identifying you when you sign into our Services or keeping track of your specified preferences, interests, or past items viewed;
Advertising- or Targeting-Related. We may use first party or third-party Technologies to deliver content on our Services.

See “Your Privacy Choices and Rights” below to understand your choices regarding these Technologies.

Analytics. We may use Technologies and other third-party tools to process analytics information on our Services. Some of our analytics partners include:

Google Analytics. For more information, please visit Google Analytics’ Privacy Policy. To learn more about how to opt-out of Google Analytics’ use of your information, please click here.
Mixpanel. For more information about Mixpanel, please visit Mixpanel’s Privacy Policy.
Facebook Connect. For more information, please visit Facebook’s Data Policy. You can object to the collection of your data by Facebook pixel, or to the use of your data for the purpose of displaying Facebook ads by contacting the following address while logged into your Facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=ads https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=ads.
Buffer. For more information about Buffer, please visit Buffer’s Privacy Policy.
CrowdTangle. For more information about CrowdTangle, please visit CrowdTangle’s Data Policy and CrowdTangle’s Cookie Policy.

Personal Information Collected from Other Sources

We may obtain personal information about you from other sources, including through third-party services and organizations that provide market research services.

3. HOW WE USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

We use your personal information for a variety of purposes, including to provide our Services, for administrative purposes, and to market our Services, as described below.

Provide Our Services

We use your personal information to provide you with our Services, such as:

Managing your personal information;
Providing access to certain areas, functionalities, and features of our Services;
Answering requests for customer or technical support;
Sending you newsletters and alerts and otherwise providing you with news and information that we think will be of interest to you;
Processing applications if you apply for a job we post on our Services; and
Allowing you to donate.

Administrative Purposes

We use your personal information for various administrative purposes, such as:

Pursuing our legitimate interests such as direct marketing, research and development (including marketing research), and network and information security;
Detecting security incidents and protecting against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity;
Measuring interest and engagement in our Services;
Improving, upgrading or enhancing our Services;
Ensuring internal quality control and safety;

Authenticating and verifying individual identities, including requests to exercise your rights under this policy;
Debugging to identify and repair errors with our Services;
Auditing relating to interactions, transactions and other compliance activities;
Enforcing our agreements and policies; and
Complying with our legal obligations.

Marketing and Advertising our Services

We may use personal information to tailor and provide you with content. We may provide you with these materials as permitted by applicable law.

Some of the ways we market to you may include email and push notifications.

If you have any questions about our marketing or advertising practices, you may contact us at any time as set forth in “Contact Us” below.

Other Purposes

We also use your personal information for other purposes as requested by you or as permitted by applicable law.

Consent.We may use personal information for other purposes that are clearly disclosed to you at the time you provide personal information or with your consent.
De-identified and Aggregated Information. We may use personal information and other information about you to create de-identified and/or aggregated information, such as de-identified demographic information, de-identified location information, information about the device from which you access our Services, or other analyses we create.

4. HOW WE DISCLOSE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

We disclose your personal information to third parties for a variety of business purposes, including to provide our Services, to protect us or others, or in the event of a major business transaction such as a merger, sale, or asset transfer, as described below.

Disclosures to Provide our Services

The categories of third parties with whom we may share your personal information are described below.

Service Providers. We may share your personal information with our third-party service providers who use that information to help us provide our Services. This includes service providers that provide us with IT support, hosting, and related services.
Partners. We may share your personal information with partners with whom we have relationships, as well as organizations, groups, and causes that we believe have similar missions or goals.
Affiliates. We may share your personal information with our company affiliates.
Advertising Partners. We do not share your personal information with and third-parties for any advertising purposes.

Disclosures to Protect Us or Others

We may access, preserve, and disclose any information we store associated with you to external parties if we, in good faith, believe doing so is required or appropriate to: comply with law enforcement or national security requests and legal process, such as a court order or subpoena; protect your, our, or others’ rights, property, or safety; enforce our policies or contracts; collect amounts owed to us; or assist with an investigation or prosecution of suspected or actual illegal activity.

Disclosure in the Event of Merger, Sale, or Other Asset Transfers

If we are involved in a merger, acquisition, financing due diligence, reorganization, bankruptcy, receivership, purchase or sale of assets, or transition of service to another provider, your personal information may be sold or transferred as part of such a transaction, as permitted by law and/or contract.

5. YOUR PRIVACY CHOICES AND RIGHTS

Your Privacy Choices. The privacy choices you may have about your personal information are determined by applicable law and are described below.

Email and Telephone Communications. If you receive an unwanted email from us, you can use the unsubscribe link found at the bottom of the email to opt out of receiving future emails. Note that we may continue to send you certain non-promotional communications regarding us and our Services, and you will not be able to opt out of those communications (e.g., communications regarding our Services or updates to our Terms or this Privacy Policy). We process requests to be placed on do-not-mail and do-not-contact lists as required by applicable law.
Cookies and Interest-Based Advertising. You may stop or restrict the placement of Technologies on your device or remove them by adjusting your preferences as your browser or device permits. However, if you adjust your preferences, our Services may not work properly. Please note that cookie-based opt-outs are not effective on mobile applications. However, you may opt-out of personalized advertisements on some mobile applications by following the instructions for Android, iOS and others.

6. SECURITY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

We take steps to ensure that your personal information is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy. Unfortunately, no system is 100% secure, and we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you provide to us. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, we do not accept liability for unauthorized disclosure.

By using our Services or providing personal information to us, you agree that we may communicate with you electronically regarding security, privacy, and administrative issues relating to your use of our Services. If we learn of a security system’s breach, we may attempt to notify you electronically by posting a notice on our Services, by mail, or by sending an email to you.

7. RETENTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

We store the personal information we collect as described in this Privacy Policy for as long as you use our Services or as necessary to fulfill the purpose(s) for which it was collected, provide our Services, resolve disputes, establish legal defenses, conduct audits, pursue legitimate business purposes, enforce our agreements, and comply with applicable laws.

8. CHILDREN’S INFORMATION

The Services are not directed to children under 13 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has uploaded personal information to our site without your consent, you may contact us as described in “Contact Us” below. If we become aware that a child has provided us with personal information in violation of applicable law, we will delete any personal information we have collected, unless we have a legal obligation to keep it, and terminate the child’s account if applicable.

In California we do not knowingly “sell” the personal information of minors under 16 years.

If you’re a California resident under 18 years old and you’re subscribed with a Service, you can ask us to remove content or information you’ve posted to a Service or we have obtained. Email us at privacy@americanindependent.com with “California Under 18 Content Removal Request” in the subject line, and tell us what you want removed. We will make reasonable efforts to remove the information from public view and/or delete collected information, although we cannot ensure the complete removal of the content and may retain the content as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

9. CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

We do not sell personal information of our readers as the term “sell” is traditionally understood. But “sell” under the CCPA is broadly defined. It includes the sharing of personal information with third parties in exchange for something of value, even if no money changes hands. To the extent Am. Independent “sells” your personal information (as the term “sell” is defined under the CCPA), you have the right to opt-out of that “sale” on a going-forward basis at any time.

To opt-out of the “sale” of your personal information (as defined under the CCPA) email privacy@americanindependent.com with “CCPA: Do Not Sell My PI” in the subject line.

After you opt out of the “sale” of your personal information, we will no longer “sell” your personal information to third parties (except in an aggregated or de-identified manner so it is no longer personal information), but we may continue to share your personal information with our service providers, which process it on our behalf.

You have the right not to receive nondiscriminatory treatment by us for the exercise of any of your rights; we will not discriminate against you should you choose to exercise any of your rights under the CCPA.

10. OTHER PROVISIONS

Third-Party Services. Certain features and functionalities of the Services may link to or allow you to interface, interact, or share personal information with, access and/or use third-party websites, services, products, and technology (collectively, “Third-Party Services”) through the Services. Am. Independent does not provide or control any aspect of the Third-Party Services and is not responsible for any compatibility issues, errors or bugs in the Services or Third-Party Services caused in whole or in part by the Third-Party Services or any update or upgrade thereto. We encourage our users to read the privacy policies of each Third-Party Service with which they interact. We do not endorse, screen or approve, and are not responsible for, the privacy practices or content of such Third-Party Services. Providing personal information to Third-Party Services is at your own risk.

Changes to our Privacy Policy. We may revise this Privacy Policy from time to time in our sole discretion. If there are any material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will notify you as required by applicable law. You understand and agree that you will be deemed to have accepted the updated Privacy Policy if you continue to use our Services after the new Privacy Policy takes effect.

11. CONTACT US

If you have any questions about our privacy practices or this Privacy Policy, or to exercise your rights as detailed in this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

privacy@americanindependent.com