At PoliticsNJ.com, we understand that privacy is important, and we've created this policy to give you information about how we collect and use personal information from users of the PoliticsNJ.com Web site. We also encourage you to review our Terms of Service for information regarding rights, usage, trademarks, licenses, liability, trademark, and content ownership. 

PoliticsNJ.com is a subsidiary of the Observer Media Group, LLC.  We reevaluate this policy on an ongoing basis, and we value your feedback. If you have questions or concerns regarding our privacy policy, we ask that you contact us at:

Customer Service
PoliticsNJ.com
Observer Media Group, LLC
915 Broadway, 9th Floor
New York, New York 10010
(212) 755-2400
e-mail: customerservice@politicsnj.com

Please note that this privacy policy may change from time to time. We will post the new policy on this page, and, if the changes allow us to use personally identifying information in ways that are different from the ways specified at the time the information was originally collected, our Web site will contain a special notice about the changes. Each version of this privacy policy will be identified by its effective date, which you can find at the bottom of the page.

1. The PoliticsNJ.com Online Privacy Policy

PoliticsNJ.com collects data, including personally identifying information, from people who use the politicsnj.com Web site. This section of our privacy policy explains how we collect and use this data.

Information we collect and how we use it

When you visit the PoliticsNJ.com Web site, PoliticsNJ.com collects several forms of usage data, including:

• Log data. Our servers automatically record certain information sent by your browser, such as your Web request, your Internet Protocol address, your referring URL, your browser type and language, and the date and time of your request.
• Cookie data. When you visit the PoliticsNJ.com Web site, PoliticsNJ.com or one of our affiliates or third-party partners may send one or more "cookies"—small files containing a string of characters—to your computer to identify you as a unique user. If you have registered with PoliticsNJ.com, the information in your cookie is used to provide a more personalized experience on our site, for example by allowing you to customize portions of the site. If you haven't registered, the cookie identifies you as a unique user and helps ensure a smoother experience on the site, such as by limiting the number of times that you see certain subscription offers. If you have not registered on our site, we cannot link the user ID in the cookie with personal identifying information and data about you, such as your name or e-mail address.
• Traffic and advertising data. Other cookies without personally identifying information and data are used to enable the Observer Media Group, LLC to gather and analyze site traffic and usage information, and to allow our advertising partners to manage the advertisements presented. These cookies sometimes work in conjunction with other techniques, such as clear GIFs or pixel tags; they do not contain personally identifying information, but they may gather information about what sites you have visited and use that information to determine which ads appear when you visit the PoliticsNJ.com site.

Browsers or third-party software can allow you to block the use of cookies while you surf our site. Or you can use third-party anonymizer services to mask information in your cookies or even general data such as your IP address. In such cases you would not be able to take advantage of most of the personalization services offered on the PoliticsNJ.com Web site.

The aggregated information we collect is used for a number of purposes including the following:

1. To improve the content and design of the PoliticsNJ.com Web site.
2. To enable audit bureaus and third party advertisers to verify our claims of traffic to the site.
3. To help advertisers, potential advertisers or marketers assess the suitability of the site for their ad campaigns.
4. To help us understand more about the interests of our users, so that we can offer goods and services we believe may be of interest.

Many portions of the PoliticsNJ.com site can be used without registering or giving us any personal information such as (but not limited to) your name and e-mail address. However, the Observer Media Group does collect personally identifying information regarding our online users, including in the following ways:

• When you provide it to us, such as (but not limited to) by entering a contest, becoming a registered member, signing up for a newsletter or tutorial, or otherwise contacting us.
• When you provide it to a company that powers a portion of our site or provides a special feature, such as a contest registration, that appears on our site.
• When you provide information about yourself or your company to PoliticsNJ.com, or when you provide information to any Observer Media Group affiliate, that information may be included in your PoliticsNJ.com user record, if one exists.
• If you have previously registered with another Observer Media Group affiliate and you begin to fill out certain forms on the PoliticsNJ.com Web site, the site may recognize you and automatically complete the form, and this auto-fill data will then be included in your PoliticsNJ.com user record.
• If you have provided information to PoliticsNJ.com or any site owned by the Observer Media Group, from time to time we may enhance that information with other information that we collect from third-party sources.

The personal information we collect may be used in a number of ways, including the following:

• To improve the content of the PoliticsNJ.com site, including by allowing the PoliticsNJ.com editors to consult with readers.
• To communicate with users about registration and other customer service issues.
• To promote products and services of the Observer Media Group as described in more detail below.
• To conduct research surveys on behalf of the Observer Media Group, and its subsidiaries and affiliates.

Information sharing

The Observer Media Group may share aggregated, nonpersonal information, such as Web site traffic figures, with third parties. This aggregated information does not identify you individually. We may share personal information with your consent or in order to provide products or services you have requested. In addition, by using the site you agree that we may also share personal information in any of the following circumstances:

• We may use or disclose personal information if we have a good-faith belief that the disclosure is reasonably necessary (a) to satisfy applicable law, regulation, legal process, or enforceable governmental request, (b) to enforce agreements we have with you, (c) to address fraud or security issues, or (d) to protect against harm to the rights, property, or safety of the Observer Media Group or our employees or customers.
• We may share personal information with trusted affiliates or third parties, such as credit card processors or fulfillment providers, who process information or perform services on our behalf.
• If you submit personal information on a portion of our site that is operated by a third party, we may share the information you submit with the third party, and the information may be used by that party as permitted under that party's privacy policy. The Observer Media Group and its parent and affiliate companies are not responsible for the third party's actions or policies. Portions of the site operated by third parties normally include a "Powered by" or “Sponsored byâ€? logo naming the third party, and/or have forms that include links to the third party's privacy policy.
• We may transfer personal information from your user record to your subscriber record, if one exists, provided that we also transfer any preferences you have set for how that personal information is used. We may share information with third parties for promotional purposes, as described below.

User Published Content

PoliticsNJ.com makes available to its users tools which allow them to publish content on the PoliticsNJ.com web site, such as (but not limited to) blogs, comments, forums, and interactive tools. 

·         PoliticsNJ.com reserves the right to remove or not to publish any individual or individual’s content on the site for any reason without explanation.

·         We reserve the right to, but do not assume the obligation, to restrict or prohibit the use of our site as we see fit whether for legal or other reasons.

·         User published Content remains the intellectual property of the individual user, however by posting Content on our Website, you grant Company a non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, worldwide, fully sub-licensable right to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, and display such Content throughout the world in any media, whether now known or hereafter discovered.  In addition, you warrant that all so-called "moral rights" in those materials have been waived.

·         You should be aware that when you disclose personal information such as your name or e-mail address in a forum, blog comment, or other area that is publicly accessible by others, that information can be collected and used by others. The New York Observer is not responsible for any information that you provide in the above areas.

Use of data for promotions, and choices for personal information

Postal addresses will be used to promote products of the Observer Media Group, and may be rented and/or licensed to select outside firms for promotional purposes. Offers for which the postal address data is rented and/or licensed for use are screened and the users are required to target their offers carefully.

When you provide your e-mail address to us, you agree to receive e-mail from the Observer Media Group, and any affiliate operations including joint endeavors with third parties; however, you can unsubscribe from these e-mails at any time simply by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the e-mail. We allow you to opt out of receiving e-mail regarding third-party offers, both when e-mail information is collected and with each use of your address. If you do not opt out at the time your e-mail address is collected, or do not respond to the questions concerning how we may use your e-mail address, your address may be used for third-party offers. Offers for which the e-mail address is rented and/or licensed for use are screened and the users are required to target their offers carefully.

If the Observer Media Group, PoliticsNJ.com or any of its products is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of some or all of its assets, all personally identifying information and other data will be transferred to the new owner.