Barnesville Area News

Barnesville Area News Company Policies

Editorial Policies

Code of Ethics and Editorial Independence

Barnesville Area News Company follows the Ethics Policy of the Society for Professional Journalists and the editorial independence policy of the Institute for Nonprofit News.

Ethics Policy Summary

Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. An ethical journalist acts with integrity.

The Society declares these four principles as the foundation of ethical journalism and encourages their use in its practice by all people in all media.

  • Seek truth and report it
  • Minimize harm
  • Act independently
  • Be accountable and transparent

Learn more about these principles on the Society of Professional Journalists’ website.

Editorial Independence

Barnesville Area News Company subscribes to standards of editorial independence adopted by the Institute for Nonprofit News:

Our organization retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. We maintain a firewall between news coverage decisions and sources of all revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions.

We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities, but our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support.

Our organization may consider donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but our organization maintains editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.

Our organization will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. We will accept anonymous donations for general support only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards have been put into place that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by our organization and in compliance with INN’s Membership Standards.

Editorial Standards

Correction Guidelines

Barnesville Area News Company is committed to providing accurate and fair news. We will respond promptly to any claim of inaccuracy. This would include but may not be limited to articles, photo captions, headlines, graphics, video and other material. Readers can request a correction by sending a request to news@barnesvillenews.org. The claim will be carefully reviewed before making any changes or updates. Typos and other minor errors will be corrected as quickly as possible. These corrections will be made typically without any notice of a correction. If a minor factual error is confirmed, the story will be amended, and the change will be noted at the bottom. Significant corrections will be noted in the headline or at the top of the story. If new details or clarifications are added to a story after its publication, our practice is to include a note describing the update at the end of the piece.

When a report is factually correct but the language we use to explain the facts is found not be clear, the language would be rewritten and a clarification added to the story. A clarification can also be used to note a new comment, response, reporting or the collection of new information has changed our understanding of an event or topic.

Typographical errors and misspellings will possibly occur. Such errors will be fixed as quickly as possible. Misspellings of a name will be corrected and appropriately noted. If a name is correctly spelled throughout most of the story but a misspelling occurs once, it will be corrected without notice.

If any figure is incorrectly noted, it will be corrected and the change noted. If the incorrect figure would substantially change the weight of the figure or story, further explanation would be provided.

Removal of Posts

Barnesville Area News Company strives to refrain from removing posts whenever feasible, as we hold a responsibility to preserve a public record that should remain intact. Any requests for updating, anonymizing, or removing prior posts must undergo an official deliberation process by our Board of Directors. These requests are primarily assessed based on whether a story presents a risk to an individual’s physical safety.

Sources and Attributions

Barnesville Area News Company refrains from publishing statements that are taken out of context or without appropriate attribution. Statements are not modified, except for minor grammatical or spelling corrections that could otherwise detract from the narrative.

Barnesville Area News Company consistently seeks comments from the parties mentioned, particularly in cases where negative allegations are made against them. It is essential to allow sources a reasonable timeframe to respond for comment when feasible. If we cannot reach them by the time of publication, Barnesville Area News Company should clarify in the article how we attempted to make contact.

When Barnesville Area News Company builds upon reporting conducted by other sources, we strive to credit this reporting to the original publisher of the story whenever it is possible and appropriate.

Our goal is to maintain transparency with our audience regarding the identity of our sources. Barnesville Area News Company avoids using anonymous sources whenever we can. If an anonymous source is utilized, the editor of the article must be informed of the source’s identity, and a justification for granting anonymity should be provided to the reader within the article. Any claims or allegations made by an anonymous source must be corroborated. Similarly, leaked documents must undergo thorough fact-checking, and claims must be corroborated.

Fact-Checking

All stories created or published by Barnesville Area News Company should be comprehensively fact-checked prior to being released. This requirement extends to personal essays or opinion pieces. It is essential to validate the assertions made by all of our sources, and for claims or allegations that have not been previously reported, we generally require multiple sources for verification.

Every story must undergo one or more editing phases. We aspire to introduce further rounds of editing and fact-checking, as we bring on more staff and volunteers. The number of editors assigned to a particular story will fluctuate based on the story’s complexity and sensitivity. The editing process also involves ensuring that the headline associated with the story is both fair and accurate.

Fabrication

Barnesville Area News Company should never knowingly disseminate false information while presenting it as truth, and avoid intentionally excluding significant or pertinent facts from any story.

Barnesville Area News Company refrains from staging scenes or events. Our role is to observe and accurately report how an event transpired. We should only ask a subject to pose for a photograph if they are specifically posing for a portrait.

Integrity

Barnesville Area News Company does not compensate for sources or access. Representatives of Barnesville Area News Company must not accept anything that could be interpreted as payment for coverage. It is essential to disclose if the writer has any self-interest in the story they are covering, or if they may appear to have one.

Our coverage is independent of our donors, sponsors and advertisers, some whom may have specific interests that may not align with our own. We also prohibit funders from contacting reporters in an effort to influence coverage.

Barnesville Area News Company must not engage in illegal activities while reporting or encourage any subject to partake in illegal actions.

Plagiarism

Barnesville Area News Company strictly prohibits plagiarism. When aggregating stories or reporting on previously covered events, we do not allow altering another author’s original work and publishing it without appropriate attribution.

When Barnesville Area News Company aggregates or publishes our own stories alongside another news partner, we must always credit the original author and the original source that published the story.

Letters to the Editor/Opinion Piece Policy

Barnesville Area News welcomes the opinions of our readers in the form of letters to the editor or opinion pieces, as long as the submissions are not in bad taste and refrain from personal attacks. Submission is not a guarantee of publication.

Submissions should be original and typewritten. Letters should not exceed 300 words. Opinion pieces should be kept under 500 words. Submissions exceeding this length could be subject to editing and may not be published in their entirety.

Barnesville Area News reserves the right to end debate on a topic after both sides have had an ample chance to express their views and reserves the right to edit submissions for readability, length, and accuracy, or refuse submissions.

All columns and letters on the opinion page are the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Barnesville Area News.

Submissions must include:

  • A one-sentence-max biography for opinion pieces.
  • Your full name with signature
  • Your complete address
  • Your telephone number
    • Your address and telephone number will not be shared but will be used for verification.

Send your submission to news@barnesvillenews.org and put Opinion in the subject line, or submit it on our website.

Inclusion and Equity Policy

Barnesville Area News Company is dedicated to showcasing the rich diversity of the Barnesville area community in its Board of Directors, volunteers, staff, and contributors, as well as its editorial choices and policies.

Legal Policies

Terms of Use

These terms of use (the “terms of use”) govern your use of all of the webpages posted at this domain, being barnesvillenews.org (the “website”), including any product or service offered by Barnesville Area News Company (the “Publisher”) arising from the use of the website.


By accessing the website, you are agreeing to accept the terms of use and this forms a binding contract between you and the Publisher. If you do not accept the terms of use, any applicable subscription agreement and the Publisher’s Privacy Policy,  then please do not access the website.

You specifically acknowledge that Publisher is providing you with access to the website in reliance on the terms of use as well as any applicable subscription agreement and the Publisher’s privacy policy.

Accessing the Website

You acknowledge that there are risks with accessing any website and that accessing the website is no different. You acknowledge that it is your sole responsibility to protect yourself against computer viruses, malware, spyware and any other risk inherent in accessing information online. Moreover, you agree that it is also your sole responsibility to back-up your data in the event that these sorts of risks manifest themselves.

You also acknowledge that the Publisher is not responsible for any charges that you incur for accessing the website, including (but not limited to) data plan charges from providers of telecommunication services.

Copyright and Trademarks

You agree that all of the literary, musical, dramatic and artistic works, including but not limited to computer programs, software, databases, text, information, data, code, sounds, sound effects, sound recordings, audio, musical compositions, performances, video, cinematographic works, photographs, pictures, illustrations and graphics associated with the website are the exclusive property of the Publisher (or licensed by the Publisher from a third party) – all of which are protected by intellectual property laws in the United States of America and elsewhere.

Similarly you agree that all trademarks (including, but not limited to trade names, logos, word and design marks) are the property of the Publisher (or licensed to the Publisher from a third party). The use of any of these trademarks without the express written consent of the owner is strictly prohibited.

User Generated Content

As a user of the website, you may have the opportunity to submit text, photographs, video, sound recordings, comments or other contributions to the website (the “User Generated Content”).

If you choose to provide the Publisher with User Generated Content, you are warranting that you are the sole copyright owner of the User Generated Content and that you have the right to grant the Publisher all intellectual property rights required to include the User Generated Content on the website.

Moreover, by providing the User Generated Content, you also grant Publisher a perpetual, royalty-free, irrevocable worldwide, non-exclusive license (but not obligation) to use the User Generated Content in any material form, in any media on any platform, including blogs and social media feeds now and in the future and for all purposes (including advertising and promotions) and to unilaterally sub-license such User Generated Content to any licensee of the Publisher.

By providing the User Generated Content, you are also waiving all moral rights in the content in favor of Publisher and acknowledge that Publisher may edit, remove, modify or alter the User Generated Content in its sole discretion and without attribution to you.

In addition, you hereby grant the Publisher an irrevocable right to use your name, user name, persona, image, likeness and photograph that you provide in connection with any User Generated Content, without any obligation or remuneration to you.

Your Authorized Use of the Website

You are permitted to use the website only for your personal, private and non-commercial use.

You may not modify, sell, resell, make derivative works, create a database, create a media monitoring service, aggregate, deep link, republish, retransmit, distribute, transfer, communicate or broadcast the website by caching, scraping, harvesting, framing or otherwise without the prior written consent of the Publisher.

You agree that:

  • you will not use the website in an unlawful manner;
  • the Publisher may reveal your identity and any of your user information in its possession to any law enforcement authority in the event of a violation or suspected violation arising from your use of the website;
  • you will not use the website to engage in conduct that is defamatory, libelous, offensive, abusive, stalking, threatening, demeaning, obscene, promotes hatred, bigotry, discrimination, is pornographic, indecent, unlawful, profane, harmful to minors, false, misleading, would constitute spam, promotes, advocates or otherwise encourages illegal activities or give rise to civil liability;
  • you will not infringe the intellectual property rights of the Publisher or third parties, including copyrights, trademarks, privacy rights;
  • you will not introduce any software to the website that is designed to compromise the functionality of it, including Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, computer viruses, code or corrupted files; 
  • you will not access any aspect of the website or its underlying architecture that you are not explicitly authorized to access; and
  • you will not impose an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on the infrastructure of the website.

Disclaimers / Limitations of Liability

The content of the website is not necessarily reflective of the views of the Publisher, including the publisher, staff, contributors or advertisers.

You agree that Publisher and its licenser are not liable to you, either directly or indirectly, for your reliance on any of the content of the website.

If you download any material from the website, you acknowledge that the Publisher makes no warranties regarding the downloaded material and will not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from the download either directly or indirectly.

You expressly agree that in no event shall the publisher be responsible to you or anyone else for any claim, loss or damage whatsoever, including without limitation any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, special, punitive or consequential damages or any damages for loss of profits, goodwill, business interruption, loss of information or data or other intangible losses arising from or in any way connected with the website.

In any event, and notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event shall the Publisher’s aggregate liability to you exceed USD $20.

Indemnity

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Publisher and each of its respective officers, directors, affiliates, business partners, employees, agents licenser from any and all claims, actions, losses demands related to your breach of these terms of use; your access and use of the website; your reliance on the website; your publication, communication, distribution, or transmission of the website; or your violation of any law of legal right of a third party. The Publisher reserves the right to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.

Jurisdiction

Your use of the website shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of United States and of the State of Ohio. Any dispute arising with respect to this agreement including, but not limited to, non-payment of our account(s), shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of the State of Ohio, situated in the County of Belmont.

General

These terms and conditions supersede any prior agreements between you and the Publisher in respect of the applicable subject matter and constitute the entire agreement between you and the Publisher. 

You may not assign or otherwise subcontract your rights or obligations to anyone.

If any part(s) of these terms of use are determined to be void, invalid or otherwise unenforceable by a court, such determination shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions.

Payment Policy – Processing Through Stripe, Inc.

To the extent that you make any payments arising from or relating to the website, you acknowledge that such payments are made by you to a third party, namely through Stripe, Inc. via Buy Me a Coffee (“Stripe”).

In making such payment, you irrevocably agree that you are contracting solely with Stripe and you acknowledge that any issues that may arise relating to the processing of such payment are strictly between you and Stripe and, explicitly, that these issues are in no way related to the Publisher and that the Publisher does not form any part of the agreement for payment processing.

To the extent that Stripe receives any such payment, the processing of same is a contract solely between you and Stripe and governed by the terms of use of Stripe as they relate to the payment processing that is undertaken by Stripe.

You acknowledge and accept that Publisher receives no information from Stripe with respect to your credit card details.

Without limiting the generality of these terms of use, you specifically acknowledge that the disclaimers, limitations of liability and indemnity provided in these terms of service apply to your payment of any amounts relating to the use of the website.

Conflict of Interest

The following Financial Conflict of Interest Policy (“Conflict of Interest Policy”) is an effort (i) to ensure that the deliberations and decisions of the Barnesville Area News Company (“Barnesville Area News Company”) are made solely in the interest of promoting the quality of journalism in the state of Ohio, and (ii) to protect the interests of Barnesville Area News Company when it considers any transaction, contract, or arrangement that might benefit or be perceived to benefit the private interest of a person affiliated with Barnesville Area News Company (each, a “Barnesville Area News Company Representative”). As used in this Conflict of Interest Policy, a Barnesville Area News Company Representative includes any director, advisory board member, financial advisor, legal counsel or employee.

Duty to Barnesville Area News Company. Each Barnesville Area News Company Representative owes a duty to Barnesville Area News Company to advance Barnesville Area News Company’s legitimate interests when the opportunity to do so arises. Each Barnesville Area News Company Representative must give undivided allegiance when making decisions affecting the organization. Similarly, Barnesville Area News Company Representatives must be faithful to Barnesville Area News Company’s nonprofit mission and are not permitted to act in a way that is inconsistent with the central goals of the organization and its nonprofit status.

Gifts. No Barnesville Area News Company Representative shall personally accept gifts or favors that could compromise his or her loyalty to Barnesville Area News Company. Any gifts or benefits personally accepted from a party having a material interest in the outcome of Barnesville Area News Company or its employees by a Barnesville Area News Company Representative individually should be merely incidental to his or her role as a Barnesville Area News Company Representative and should not be of value. Cash payments may not be accepted, and no gifts should be accepted if there are strings attached. For example, no Barnesville Area News Company Representative may accept gifts if he or she knows that such gifts are being given to solicit his or her support of or opposition to the outcome or content of any Barnesville Area News Company publication.

Conflicts of Interest. The following are examples of conflicts of interest which must be promptly disclosed to the Barnesville Area News Company Board of Directors pursuant to Section 4 below by any Barnesville Area News Company Representative with knowledge of such conflict of interest:

  1. any real or apparent conflict of interest between a donor or the subject of a Barnesville Area News Company publication or report and a Barnesville Area News Company Representative;
  2. a Barnesville Area News Company Representative’s ownership of an equity interest in a person or entity that is or will be the subject of a Barnesville Area News Company publication or report; and
  3. failure to disclose to Barnesville Area News Company all relationships between the subject of any Barnesville Area News Company publication or report and any Barnesville Area News Company Representative or close relatives of the Barnesville Area News Company Representative.

Conflict Procedure:

  1. If a Barnesville Area News Company Representative or party related to a Barnesville Area News Company Representative has an interest in any contract, action or transaction to be entered into with Barnesville Area News Company, a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest exists. Any Barnesville Area News Company Representative having knowledge that such a conflict of interest exists or may exist (an “Interested Barnesville Area News Company Representative”) will so advise the Board of Directors promptly. An Interested Barnesville Area News Company Representative will include in the notice the material facts as to the relationship or interest of the Interested Barnesville Area News Company Representative in the entity proposing to enter into a contract, action or transaction with Barnesville Area News Company.
  2. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Board of Directors may authorize any committee appointed pursuant to the Barnesville Area News Company by-laws (a “Committee”) to act in lieu of the Board of Directors in determining whether an action, contract or transaction is fair to Barnesville Area News Company as of the time it is authorized or approved by the Committee.
  3. At any time that a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest is identified, the President of the Board or a Chair of the applicable Committee will ensure that such conflict of interest is placed on the agenda for the next meeting of the Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable. The notice of such meeting of the Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, will include, to the extent available when the notice is sent, a description of the conflict of interest matter to be discussed. By notice before the meeting or at the meeting, the directors on the board or the Committee, as applicable, will be advised that a vote will be taken at the meeting and that, in order to authorize the relevant contract, action or transaction, an affirmative vote of a majority of disinterested directors present at the meeting at which a quorum is present will be required and will be sufficient, even though the disinterested directors constitute less than a quorum of the Board of Directors or the Committee.
  4. Reasonable effort will be made to cause the material facts concerning the relationships between the individuals and Barnesville Area News Company which create the conflict to be delivered to and shared with the members of the Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, prior to the meeting to enable the directors to arrive at the meeting prepared to discuss the issue. In the event it is not practicable to deliver the information prior to the meeting, it will be delivered to the directors at the meeting, and the directors can act upon the matter with the same authority as if notice had been given prior to the meeting.
  5. The Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, will invite all parties to the conflict of interest to attend the meeting, to make presentations and to be prepared to answer questions, if necessary. The Board or Directors or the Committee, as applicable, will also invite outside experts if necessary.
  6. At the meeting, providing a quorum is present, the conflict will be discussed to ensure that the directors present are aware of the issues and the factors involved. The interested directors may be counted for purposes of a quorum, even though they may not take part in any vote on the issues.
  7. The Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, must decide, in good faith, reasonably justified by the material facts, whether the action, contract or transaction would be in the best interest of Barnesville Area News Company and fair to Barnesville Area News Company as of the time it is authorized or approved.
  8. All interested directors must abstain from voting and, if necessary, leave the room when the vote is taken.
  9. The Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, will maintain a written account of all that transpires at the meeting and incorporate such account into the minutes of the meeting and disseminate it to the full Board of Directors. Such minutes will be presented for approval at the next meeting of the Board of Directors and maintained in the corporate record book.
  10. To the extent that the conflict of interest is continuing and the contract, action or transaction goes beyond one (1) year, the foregoing notice and discussion and vote will be repeated on an annual basis.

Personal Loans. Barnesville Area News Company may not loan to, or guarantee the personal obligations of, any Barnesville Area News Company Representative.

Financial Policies

Donor and Financial Transparency Policy

We are committed to transparency in every aspect of funding our organization.

Accepting financial support does not mean we endorse donors or their products, services or opinions.

We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals, organizations and foundations to help with our general operations, coverage of specific topics and special projects. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates as a public trust, we do not pay certain taxes. We may receive funds from standard government programs offered to nonprofits or similar businesses.

Our news judgments are made independently – not based on or influenced by donors or any revenue source. We do not give supporters the rights to assign, review or edit content.

We make public all revenue sources and donors who give $5,000 or more per year. As a news nonprofit, we avoid accepting charitable donations from anonymous sources, government entities, political parties, elected officials or candidates seeking public office. We will not accept donations from sources who, deemed by our board of directors, present a conflict of interest with our work or compromise our independence.

We include disclaimers at the bottom of articles about any company, organization, or public issue in which a director, executive, editorial staffer or volunteer has a business or personal interest.

Donor Privacy Policy

Barnesville Area News Company believes in safeguarding personal information and ensuring that privacy is respected and protected for donors, friends, volunteers and vendors. We will use personal information to keep donors, friends, volunteers and vendors informed of our activities including our programs, special events and funding needs. We respect all requests to remain anonymous.

We provide an “opt-out” procedure for donors and others who receive such materials to request that their names be deleted from similar mailings, phone calls or other communications in the future. Individuals may also request that their record be flagged as “Do Not Call.” Barnesville Area News Company will honor all or a combination of these “opt out” preferences.

Donor Information Sharing

Barnesville Area News Company does not share the home addresses, telephone numbers or email addresses of donors and prospective donors to any individual or organization without the express permission of the person to be disclosed.

We respect our donors’ choices and control over their information. You, as a donor may, at any time, have your name excluded from any donor list activity. To ask that your name be excluded from donor list activity or to otherwise change how Barnesville Area News Company contacts you, please email us at finance@barnesvillenews.org.

Barnesville Area News expects vendors to uphold privacy guidelines. If data is shared, a Non-Disclosure Agreement will be entered into with the vendor and the sharing of data is prevented by contract stipulations between Barnesville Area News Company and our vendors.

Collection of Data

Barnesville Area News Company collects personal data through event registration, email subscription, online donation services, postal mail, wire transfer, phone and other electronic means. We only collect this information when users submit it voluntarily or through the public domain. If a user prefers not to submit such information online, they may contact Barnesville Area News Company to determine an appropriate channel to transmit this information.

From these services, Barnesville Area News may collect a person’s first name, last name, email address, company, position, secondary email address, address, city, state, zip code, and phone numbers (home, work, or mobile). We may collect event-specific information pertaining to a person’s attendance, meal preferences and guests. We may collect the provided name and email of a spouse, contributor or foundation to facilitate the recognition for a gift. This confidential information is kept on file for IRS purposes.

Wire transfer information received and processed by Barnesville Area News is stored in Quickbooks, a leading financial management and business operations software for nonprofits, international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the public sector.

Barnesville Area News Company complies with CANSPAM and at any time donors, friends, volunteers and vendors may “opt-out” or be removed from our contact lists and can unsubscribe to emails. Barnesville Area News Company will discontinue contact with any person upon oral or written request. For questions regarding our privacy policy or to make an “opt-out” request, please feel free to contact us at:

Barnesville Area News Company
PO Box 266
Barnesville Ohio 43713
Phone: 740-310-7093
Email: finance@barnesvillenews.org

Barnesville Area News Company will maintain an electronic record in our database of all requests for discontinuance of contacts. Oral requests will be recorded in writing by staff and will then be permanently recorded in the electronic donor database.

Storage of Data

Donor information is maintained in a password-protected, secured database. Only authorized personnel have access to this information and only for appropriate business purposes. This information is shared with Barnesville Area News Company board members and authorized staff, only on a confidential and need-to-know basis.

Online Security and Enforcement

Barnesville Area News has an online donor privacy policy. The policy may be viewed here. This is a summarization of key points: When we transfer and receive certain types of sensitive information such as online donations and account information, we direct visitors to a secure server, which communicates via SSL encryption and which has been designed to reduce the possibility of interception and hacking. You’ll know that you’re in a secure area of our website when the “http” portion of the Barnesville Area News Company website address in your browser changes to “https.” The “s” stands for “secure.” We operate secure data networks protected by industry standard firewall and password protection systems. Our security and privacy policies are periodically reviewed and enhanced as necessary. Only authorized individuals, who are required to comply with our privacy policy, have access to the information provided by our customers.

Cookies. “Cookies” may be used in connection with Barnesville Area News Company’s digital properties, for targeted remarketing. A cookie is a small amount of identifier data that is sent to your browser from a web server and stored on your computer’s hard drive. By using cookies, information is potentially collected without your express knowledge. Most browsers are initially set to accept cookies but permit you to change the setting to refuse cookies or to be alerted when cookies are being sent. While refusal to accept cookies will not prevent the use of some portions of this site, other portions of this site may not function properly without cookies. You can reject cookies or cancel them by instructing your Web browser accordingly.

IP Addresses. Barnesville Area News Company may also collect IP addresses, domain names, and similar items regarding users of this site to measure the number of visits, pages visited, average time spent on this site, and similar items. Barnesville Area News Company may also use your IP address to diagnose problems with our server, to administer our website and for statistical metrics used to track website visitor traffic.

Credit Cards. Barnesville Area News Company does not currently directly process, store or transmit credit card information.

Annual Report

Barnesville Area News Company publishes a list of the names of donors in an annual report. Options for anonymous giving and “optout” selections are available. Please contact the Barnesville Area News Company for these requests.

Events

Event attendee’s information. Barnesville Area News Company may utilize a system to collect information about guests that are seated at event tables. This information may include name, email, company and address. Guests may follow the “opt-out” options outlined in this policy.

Privacy Enforcement with Vendors. If data is shared, a Non-Disclosure Agreement will be entered into with the vendor and the sharing of data is prevented by contract stipulations that are present in contacts between Barnesville Area News Company and our vendors. We do not authorize these service providers to use or disclose the information except as necessary to perform services on our behalf or to comply with legal requirements.

Barnesville Area News Company may also occasionally ask users to complete surveys for research purposes. There also may be services on our website that require you to fill out an online form or send an email message in order to utilize these services. Barnesville Area News Company collects any information that you provide in such circumstances, including any personal information.

Privacy Enforcement with Corporations/Employee Giving. Some corporations may support Barnesville Area News Company through employee giving programs and campaigns. Generally, these are managed by the corporation and are processed through payroll deduction. Barnesville Area News Company seeks permission from the corporation before adding any employees to our database. Barnesville Area News Company may share cumulative giving totals but will not share individual donor/employee names.

Employees may participate in matching gift programs with their employers. Matching gift requests are sent to the corporation for processing with the knowledge of the employee and the appropriate paperwork.

About Our Privacy Policy

Barnesville Area News Company may disclose information it collects when required to do so by a court, regulatory agency, subpoena, law, regulation, or other body of competent jurisdiction and authority. We assume no liability for any unauthorized actions of third parties or accidental transmission errors that may disclose information about you, and Barnesville Area News Company is not responsible for other sites’ privacy practices, which may be different from our organization’s privacy practices.

Contacting Us About Your Personal Information

If you would like to review the personal information that Barnesville Area News Company has collected about you in order to verify its accuracy and completeness, or if you have a question or complaint regarding the privacy practices of Barnesville Area News Company, or to request that personal information be deleted from its records, please contact us at finance@barnesvillenews.org.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

Barnesville Area News Company may revise this Privacy Policy at any time by updating this posting. Please consult this Privacy Policy regularly.

Last Updated: December 29, 2025