It is important to THE LENS that visitors to our site understand what information we gather about them, how we use it, and how we work to protect it. By using our website, and/or signing up for services such as membership or our newsletter, you consent to information practices outlined in our Privacy Policy.

Information Collection

We track how our visitors use this site so that we can see what people like and don’t like. We also analyze and aggregate information about use patterns and share the aggregated data with our sponsors (for example, we keep track of how many users see and click on particular advertisements). We may also collect personal information about you via registration for newsletters, commenting, donations, membership and other areas. Where you have an opportunity to supply information about yourself you may choose not to provide requested information but in such cases you may not be able to use certain functions on this website.

We will not release your name, email address or any other personal information to anyone outside TheLensNOLA.org without your consent, unless we are under a legal order to do so, or there is an emergency involving danger to a person or property. We will not provide our sponsors or anyone else outside TheLensNOLA.org with any information specific to you unless we have your consent.

If you chose to provide your personally identifiable information for the purposes of a third-party contest, survey or newsletter, your consent shall be deemed to be given for the release of your personally identifiable information with regard to that third party only, in addition to TheLensNOLA.org. Only authorized employees of THE LENS or consultants for THE LENS are allowed access to personal information about you. Any employee or consultant who violates our privacy and security policies is subject to disciplinary action.

We occasionally have service contractors, third party agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, and joint ventures that perform functions on our behalf, including but not limited to credit card processing and website hosting. They have access to personal information needed to perform their functions, and are contractually obligated to maintain the confidentiality and security of the data. They are restricted from using or altering this data in anyway other than to provide the requested services to TheLensNOLA.org. In addition, we may always share, disclose, and transfer all information, postings, and any and all other personal and non-personal information we have collected to a successor-entity in the case of the sale of the assets of THE LENS, corporate reorganization, merger, change in control, or other similar transaction.

Remember that any information you share in public areas, such as the TheLensNOLA.org comments area, becomes public and therefore this Privacy Policy does not apply to any information you choose to make public. We encourage visitors to TheLensNOLA.org to be cautious about what they disclose and that they do not post any personal information that they expect to keep private. Personally Identifiable Information is information that can be used to contact you or determine your specific identity. If other information is linked to this information, it also becomes Personally Identifiable Information.

Use and Disclosure of Anonymous Information

Anonymous Information is any information other than Personally Identifiable Information, including aggregate information derived from Personally Identifiable Information.

TheLensNOLA.org may use this information:

  • To improve the TheLensNOLA.org website and service, to monitor traffic and general usage patterns, and for other general business purposes.
  • To inform publishers as to what content is appealing to readers, to inform sponsors of the usage habits or characteristics of the interested audience, and to advise potential donors so that they may better understand the TheLensNOLA.org user base.

Cookies

A cookie is a small amount of data, which often includes an anonymous unique identifier that is sent to your browser from a website’s servers and stored on your computer. Each website can send its own cookies to your browser if your browser’s preferences allow it, but (to protect your privacy) most browsers only permit a website to access the cookies that the same website has already sent to you, not the cookies sent to you by other sites.

TheLensNOLA.org may use cookies to identify you as a repeat visitor or customer of the website, to maintain session information for logged-in users, and to track usage trends and patterns in order to better understand and improve areas of our website.

TheLensNOLA.org has no control over whether and how our sponsors use cookies that originate from their website. You are always free to decline our cookies if your browser permits, but you may not be able to take full advantage of our site’s features.

TheLensNOLA.org may partner with third parties who use cookies, web beacons or similar technologies to collect information as part of their business practices.

We may use third-party advertising companies to serve ads on our behalf. These companies may employ cookies and action tags to measure advertising effectiveness. All computers and servers on the internet use IP addresses to recognize and communicate with each other. We collect IP addresses to administer and analyze our site and report aggregate, non-personal information (such as how many visitors we have). When you call up our site on your computer, our servers enter the IP address of that computer into a log. To maintain our users’ anonymity, we do not associate IP addresses with records containing personal information.

We do not and cannot use cookies or IP address tracking to retrieve personal information from your computer.

Security

TheLensNOLA.org employs a number of security methods designed to prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure correct use of information. Your personal data will be stored within a database that is located behind a firewall for added security.

No data transmission over the Internet or any wireless network can be guaranteed to be secure. As a result, while we try to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or guarantee the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk. We are not liable for the illegal acts of any third party.

We do not encrypt normal web sessions, however any transmission to the TheLensNOLA.org website or service of credit card information uses SSL encryption to help protect the data.

Links to Other Sites

TheLensNOLA.org provides links and pointers to websites maintained by other organizations. TheLensNOLA.org provides these links as a convenience to users, but it does not operate or control such sites. TheLensNOLA.org also disclaims any responsibility for the information on those sites and any products or services offered there, and cannot vouch for the privacy policies of such sites. TheLensNOLA.org does not make any warranties or representations that any linked sites, or this site, will function without error or interruption, that defects will be corrected, or that the sites and their servers are free of viruses and other problems that can harm your computer.

Opt Out

If at any time you would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, we include detailed unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each email.

Children

TheLensNOLA.org is not directed at children (persons under the age of 13), and we do not knowingly collect, either online or offline, Personally Identifiable Information from children. If you believe that we have received information from a person under 13, please contact us by email at editor@thelensnola.org or in writing at

The Lens
4344 Earhart Blvd. Suite B
New Orleans, LA 70125

and we will take appropriate action.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

TheLensNOLA.org may change its privacy policy from time to time. If we make any changes regarding disclosure of Personally Identifiable Information to third parties, we will post notice of the new policy on our home page.

Disclaimers and Limitations of Liability

ALTHOUGH WE TAKE REASONABLE STEPS TO PREVENT THE INTRODUCTION OF VIRUSES, WORMS, OR OTHER DESTRUCTIVE MATERIALS AND PROGRAMS TO OUR SITE, WE DO NOT GUARANTEE OR WARRANT THAT OUR SITE OR MATERIALS THAT MAY BE DOWNLOADED FROM OUR SITE ARE FREE FROM SUCH DESTRUCTIVE FEATURES. WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR HARM ATTRIBUTABLE TO SUCH FEATURES. WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, LOSS OR INJURY BASED ON ERRORS, OMISSIONS, INTERRUPTIONS OR OTHER INACCURACIES IN OUR SITE, NOR FOR ANY CLAIM, LOSS OR INJURY THAT RESULTS FROM YOUR USE OF THIS SITE OR YOUR BREACH OF ANY PROVISION OF THIS AGREEMENT.

Questions

If you have any questions regarding our Privacy Policy or our use of your information, please email editor@thelensnola.org.