Site Policies

Comments

Commenters must register with a valid email address. All comments are subject to review and are posted at the discretion of the editors. Because we moderate comments, keep in mind that it may be some time before your comment appears.

However, we own the blog, so we make the rules, and we don’t have to post all submitted comments or explain why we’ve rejected any. That said, we’ll not post comments that:

  • Use profanity, either extensively or beyond the mild sort (damn, hell, etc.).
  • Include libelous/offensive/personal attacks on anyone, particularly another commenter. (There’s too much nastiness in life as it is without you adding to it.)
  • Contain sentiments or statements aimed at particular individuals or minorities. (In other words, bigots are not welcome.)
  • Are strident, off-topic rants, especially those containing no substantive or informed content. (If you want to rant, go to the comments section of the WT&G.)
  • Contain extensive cutting and pasting of copyrighted material (“extensive” meaning more than three short or two long paragraphs).
  • Consist of only a sentence or two plus a link to the author’s website in an obvious effort to garner traffic. (You want clicks, you have to earn them with good content, like everyone else.)
  • Are advertisements for products or services. (If you want to place an ad on this site for real, by all means contact the editor. Our rates are very reasonable!)
  • Are obvious spam or links to spam sites. (I don’t like spam).
  • Are, in the opinion of the editor, the work of persistent troublemakers or trolls. (And yes, we also get to define who they are.)

In other words, if you want to comment here, address the issue. Ad hominem comments will not be published. Don’t go off-topic, don’t impersonate anyone, and don’t get your facts wrong. Frequent offenders will have their privileges removed and will be made to turn over the compost piles and clean the henhouse.

Fair Use Policy

Both RuralFreeMedia.com/the website and Rural Free Media/the podcast are the creation and property of Sharon A. Mahoney. All Rural Free Media video and photographs are the property of and copyright Sharon A. Mahoney, unless otherwise noted.

Some of the images and excerpts used in this website have not been pre-authorized. They are made available for the purpose of analysis and critique, as well as to advance the understanding of political, media and cultural issues. The ‘fair use’ of such material is provided for under U.S. Copyright Law. In accordance with U.S. Code Title 17, Section 107, material on this site (along with credit links and attributions to original sources) is viewable for educational and intellectual purposes.

Legal Agreements with This Website

If you are interested in using any copyrighted material from this site for any reason that goes beyond ‘fair use,’ you must first obtain permission from the copyright owner. Although legal agreements with this website may be negotiated via email, all agreements will, in their final form, be paper-based, signed by both parties in blue ink, and with an original copy distributed to, and held by, each party. Otherwise agreement will not be presumed.