Terms & Conditions

Last Updated: April 8, 2011

Terms & Conditions

Please note that our Sites and Mobile Content are under constant development. New services are added frequently and this agreement may therefore be modified and updated on an ongoing basis. It is important to check back to this page regularly.

General Rules

The Atlantic Monthly Group, Inc. ("The Atlantic") owns and operates several public-facing websites, including theatlantic.com and,theatlanticwire.com, as well as makes the same or similar content available to mobile users, including via WAP and apps available to users of Apple's iPhone and iPad, (collectively, the "Sites" or "Sites and Mobile Content").  (App purchases are typically also subject to the terms and conditions of the entity that operates the app store, which are accessible on that entity's website.)

Your use of the Sites and Mobile Content and associated products and services, regardless of media, is subject to the terms, conditions, and disclaimers set forth below; to our Online Privacy Policy; and to all applicable laws and regulations. In addition, The Atlantic reserves the right to terminate access to the Sites and Mobile Content for any reason, and to take any other actions that The Atlantic, in its sole discretion, believes to be in the interest of the company and some or all of its users and customers. The Atlantic reserves the right to modify these disclaimers, terms, and conditions of access, without advance notice.

This is a binding contract between The Atlantic and you. By accessing our Sites and/or Mobile Content, you hereby accept this agreement.  As a material condition of such use, you warrant that you are over the age of eighteen and that you have provided accurate and complete information in any communication with The Atlantic.

Access

Access to the Sites and to some Mobile Content is provided free of charge and does not create a professional services relationship or any other relationship with The Atlantic.

These Sites and Mobile Content are provided solely for your personal, non-commercial use. You may not develop or derive for commercial sale any data in machine-readable or other form that incorporates or uses any substantial part of the Sites nor transfer to or store any data residing or exchanged over the Sites in any electronic network for use by more than one user unless you obtain prior written permission from The Atlantic.  Specifically, unless explicitly authorized in these Terms and Conditions or by the owner of the materials, you may not modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, translate, sell, create derivative works, exploit, or distribute in any manner or medium any material from the Sites.  Information about requesting permission to reproduce or distribute materials from the Sites can be found here.

For any images, text, data or other information (referred to here as "Content") you submit to The Atlantic (including profile information, blog posts, chat room or forum pages, and any e-mail) you affirm, represent and warrant that you own the right to utilize, to license and to sublicense the Content and you grant to The Atlantic, and anyone authorized by The Atlantic, a non-exclusive, worldwide, paid-up, royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual license, including right of sublicense, to use, copy,  assign, display, distribute, perform, reproduce in whole or in part, and modify the Content in any medium or any manner, in whole or part (whether now known or  hereafter developed), without any restrictions to you, for the sole intended purpose of the Sites and/or services provided. You also grant to each user of the Sites a non-exclusive license to access the Content through the Sites and to use, reproduce, distribute, display and perform such Content as permitted through the functionality of the Sites and under this Agreement.

For any Content you post that you do not own, you guarantee to us that you have the legal right to post such Content and that it will not violate any law or the rights of any person or entity. IN OTHER WORDS, AND AMONG OTHER THINGS, YOU WILL NOT POST CONTENT ON THE SITES YOU DO NOT OWN WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE OWNER OF THE CONTENT, INCLUDING WRITTEN, PHOTOGRAPHIC, MUSIC AND VIDEO CONTENT.

Intellectual Property

The Atlantic and the Sites, and all other text and images contained on the Sites and in The Atlantic's products are protected by United States trademark and copyright law and other applicable law and are the property of The Atlantic, except as otherwise identified. All copyrights and trademarks not the property of The Atlantic that are used or referred to in the Sites and The Atlantic's products are the property of their respective owners. Nothing contained in the site or other products shall be construed as granting any license or other rights to any copyright, trademark, patent or other property of The Atlantic or any third party, whether by implication, laches, estoppel or explicit grant. Because the content is proprietary, any unauthorized use of materials on the site or other products may violate the law.  If you are a copyright owner and believe infringing material is present on any of the Sites, please refer to the procedures outlined below in the section titled "The Atlantic Sites DMCA Copyright Infringement Claim Policy."

The Atlantic's products, including third party and licensed materials on the site, may not be modified, reproduced, republished, retransmitted, or displayed except for personal use. Any use for a commercial or public purpose requires specific written permission from The Atlantic.

Acceptable Use Policy

You are solely responsible for any and all acts and omissions that occur during or relating to your use of the Sites, and you agree not to engage in unacceptable use of the Sites, which includes, without limitation, use of the Sites to:

·         Harm or threaten to harm users or members of the general public in any way, or "stalk" or otherwise harass any other person or entity;

·         Post or transmit any Content that is unlawful, false or misleading, grossly offensive, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortuous, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, pornographic, libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically, or otherwise objectionable;

·         Disseminate or transmit "spam," unsolicited messages, chain letters, any advertisements, solicitations, pyramid schemes, investment opportunities or other unsolicited commercial communication;

·         Purchase, sell, or offer to purchase or sell any equity or security or market instrument; provide information designed to manipulate any equity or security or market; or disseminate or transmit any material, non-public information about companies without authorization to do so;

·         Collect, use, or store any personally identifiable information about other users, or otherwise violate the personal privacy rights of others;

·         Impersonate any person or entity (including a Mobile Content or Sites agent, user, or moderator), or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity;

·         Post any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, or any other form of solicitation except in areas that are expressly designated by the Sites for such purpose;

·         Disseminate or transmit any Content that infringes or violates any party's copyright, trademark, trade secret, patent or other proprietary right; or use or distribute third-party information (whether or not protected as a trade secret) in violation of a duty of confidentiality, fiduciary duty, or similar duty;

·         Violate any law (whether local, state, national, or international), whether or not intentionally;

·         Forge headers or otherwise intentionally disguise the origin of any content or communication; interfere with or disrupt the Sites, or servers or networks connected to the Sites; or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies, or regulations of networks connected to the Sites;

·         Post any Content related to partisan political campaigning or fundraising.

·         Express or imply that any statements you make are endorsed by us;

·         Modify, adapt, sub-license, translate, sell, reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble any portion of the Sites;

·         Obtain, copy, monitor, index or data mine through the use of a robot, spider, any automated device, or any manual process, the Sites or the contents (except as expressly permitted by The Atlantic);

·         Remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in the Sites;

·         "Frame" or "mirror" any part of the Sites; or

·         Engage in any other activity deemed by the Atlantic to be in conflict with the spirit or intent of this agreement or that might violate the rights of others or give rise to liability.

You understand that by using the Sites, you may be exposed to Content that may offend you or challenge your beliefs. Your remedy is to avoid such Content by discontinuing your access.

Content and Non-Endorsement

Opinions and other statements expressed by users and third parties are theirs alone, not opinions of The Atlantic. Content created by third parties is the sole responsibility of the third parties and its accuracy and completeness are not endorsed or guaranteed. The Sites and third parties may provide links to web pages, web sites, and various resources or locations on the web. The Atlantic has no control over the information you access via such links, does not endorse that information, and shall not be responsible for it or for the consequences of your use of that information.


Forums and Comment Areas

The Forums and Comment Areas are designed to permit you to share your ideas and opinions. Information on the Forums and Comment Areas is provided by our staff and other contributors, some of whom use anonymous screen names and are people not otherwise connected with us. You acknowledge that a large volume of information is available in our Forums and Comment Areas and that people participating in such Forums and Comment Areas occasionally post messages or make statements, whether intentionally or unintentionally, that are inaccurate, misleading or deceptive. The Atlantic neither endorses nor is responsible for such messages or statements, or for any opinion, advice, information or other utterance made or displayed on the Sites or Forums and Comment Areas by third parties. The opinions expressed in the Forums and Comment Areas reflect solely the opinion(s) of the participants and may not reflect the opinion(s) of The Atlantic. The Atlantic is not responsible for any errors or omissions in postings in the Forums and Comment Areas, for hyperlinks embedded in messages or for any results obtained from the use of such information. Under no circumstances will The Atlantic or its affiliates, be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on such information obtained through the Sites or the Forums and Comment Areas.

The Atlantic does not initiate, edit, modify, select, or designate specific recipients for any messages or other data entered into the Forum and Comment Areas or any other part of the Sites, except that (i) The Atlantic may consolidate and edit for clarity any Content posted to chat rooms or online forums, (ii) The Atlantic may inform registered users or third parties of particular content, ask for their response, or ask them to host discussions, and (iii) The Atlantic reserves the right to monitor the Sites and to remove any information that The Atlantic, in its sole discretion, considers to be inappropriate or unlawful.

You acknowledge and agree that The Atlantic has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the Forums and Comment Areas and the materials you transmit or post; to alter or remove any such materials (including, without limitation, any posting to a Forum or Comment Area); to disclose such materials and the circumstances surrounding their transmission to any third party in order to operate the Sites properly; to protect ourselves, our visitors, and the public; and to comply with legal obligations or reasonable governmental requests.

You acknowledge and agree that unless otherwise stated, all materials and information you provided will be deemed to be provided to us on a non-confidential and non-proprietary basis.

Use of RSS Feeds

Individuals may use the theatlantic.com RSS feeds free of charge for their personal, non-commercial use only. When using the theatlantic.com feeds, we ask that you provide attribution to theatlantic.com. Theatlantic.com also reserves the right to disable, to change, or to cease distribution of these theatlantic.com RSS feeds at any time, and reserves the right to require individuals to cease any and all use of these feeds at any time for any reason. To request permission to make commercial use of theatlantic.com RSS feeds, please contact us at permissions@theatlantic.com.  Theatlantic.com will consider such submitted requests, but is not obligated to grant any specific permission request.

Use of Associated Press Materials

Some of the material available on this Site is provided by the Associated Press. By using this Site you agree and acknowledge that (1) you will not publish, broadcast, or rewrite for broadcast or publication, or redistribute directly or indirectly in any medium any Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio, and/or video material, and (2) no Associated Press materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and non-commercial use. The Associated Press will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in its materials or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part of its materials, or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing. In addition to those set forth in this paragraph, the Associated Press may impose other terms and conditions on the use of its materials. Please click here for more information.

Employment Opportunities

The Atlantic may post employment opportunities on the Sites and/or invite users to submit resumes to it. If you choose to submit your name, contact information, resume and/or other personal information to The Atlantic in response to employment listings, you are authorizing The Atlantic and its service providers to utilize this information for all lawful and legitimate hiring and employment purposes. The Atlantic also reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to forward the information you submit to its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, vendors and service providers for legitimate business purposes. Nothing in this Agreement or contained in the Sites shall constitute a promise by The Atlantic to interview, hire or employ any individual who submits information to it, nor shall anything in this Agreement or contained in the Sites constitute a promise that The Atlantic will review any or all of the information submitted to it by users.

The Atlantic Sites DMCA Copyright Infringement Claim Policy

The Atlantic respects the intellectual property of others, and requires that our users do the same. You may not upload, embed, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any material that infringes any copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights of any person or entity.  The Atlantic has the right to prohibit infringers from using our Sites. 

If you believe your work has been copied and posted on or through the Sites in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please send The Atlantic's Copyright Agent a notification of claimed infringement with all of the following information:

(a) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works;

(b) identification of the claimed infringing material and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material on the Sites (providing the URL(s) of the claimed infringing material satisfies this requirement);

(c) information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an email address;

(d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;

(e) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notification is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf; and

(f) your physical or electronic signature.

The Atlantic's Copyright Agent for notification of claimed infringement can be reached as follows: Copyright Agent, Bruce Gottlieb, The Atlantic Monthly Group, Inc., 600 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20037, (202) 266-7000, fax: (202) 266-7157, bgottlieb(at)theatlantic(dot)com.

Upon receipt of a Notification of Copyright Infringement from a copyright owner that contains the required information described in (a) through (f) above, The Atlantic will notify the user, if known, of the alleged infringement and remove or disable access to the material that is alleged to be infringing if hosted on The Atlantic's Site or Mobile Content.  No personal user information is shared with the copyright owner unless required by law.

If The Atlantic receives more than one Notice of Copyright Infringement concerning a user, the user may be deemed a "repeat copyright infringer." The Atlantic reserves the right to terminate the accounts of "repeat copyright infringers."

Procedure to File a DMCA Counter-Claim

If you have received a notice of copyright infringement and you believe that a copyright holder has accused you in error, you may file a DMCA Counter-Claim with The Atlantic's designated agent.

To be effective, a Counter-Claim must be a written communication provided to The Atlantic's designated agent and must include the following information:

(a) A physical or electronic signature of the user;

(b) Identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled;

(c) A statement under penalty of perjury that the user has a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled;

(d) The user's name, address and telephone number, and a statement that the subscriber consents to the jurisdiction of Federal District Court for the judicial district in which the address is located, or if the user's address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which the service provider may be found, and that the user will accept service of process from the person who provided notification or an agent of such person;

Upon receipt of a DMCA Counter-Claim, The Atlantic will provide the complaining party with a copy of the DMCA Counter-Claim. When The Atlantic receives a Counter-Claim that meets the requirements of the DMCA, The Atlantic will process the Counter-Claim in accordance with the requirements of the DMCA.

Limitation of Liability and Use

The Atlantic has worked to ensure the accuracy of the information it provides through its products and services, including through the Sites. This information frequently relies on data obtained from many sources, however, and The Atlantic cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information provided or any analysis based thereon.

YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT THE USE OF THE ATLANTIC'S PRODUCTS AND SERVICES, INCLUDING THE SITES, IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. SUCH PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND THE ATLANTIC MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, AND DISCLAIMS ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE ATLANTIC DISCLAIMS ANY WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE OR ERROR FREE. NO ADVICE, OPINION OR OTHER INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITES OR FROM THE ATLANTIC, ORALLY OR IN ANY MEDIA, SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY FROM THE ATLANTIC NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THIS AGREEMENT.

EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE STATED, THE ATLANTIC MAKES NO WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION REGARDING OF CONFIDENTIALITY OF ANY COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATION TRANSMITTED ON THIS SITES OR ANY WEB SITE LINKED TO THE SITES. YOU AGREE THAT NEITHER THE ATLANTIC, NOR ANY OTHER PROVIDERS OF PRODUCTS OR SERVICES RELATED TO THE SITES, ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF ANY INFORMATION, (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION CREDIT CARD INFORMATION, PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION, INCLUDING EMAIL ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER, ETC.), AND NEITHER THE ATLANTIC NOR ANY OTHER PROVIDERS OF PRODUCTS OR SERVICES RELATED TO THE SITES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGES THAT MAY ARISE FROM DISCLOSURE OF SUCH INFORMATION.

THE ATLANTIC AND ITS DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, CONSULTANTS, AGENTS AND OTHER REPRESENTATIVES SHALL NOT BE LIABLE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR OTHER DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS OR COSTS OR ATTORNEY'S FEES, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO BREACH OF CONTRACT, BREACH OF WARRANTY, NEGLIGENCE, OR STRICT LIABILITY, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY WAS INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

IN STATES THAT DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN CATEGORIES OF DAMAGES, THE ATLANTIC'S LIABILITY, AND THAT OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES OR PARENTS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES, BUSINESS PARTNERS, INFORMATION PROVIDERS AND LICENSORS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE HEIRS AND ASSIGNS IS LIMITED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY SUCH STATES' LAWS.

The Atlantic assumes no responsibility or liability arising from the content of the Sites nor for any error, defamation, libel, slander, omission, falsehood, obscenity, pornography, profanity, danger or inaccuracy contained in any information within the Sites or accessed through the Sites. The Atlantic also does not warrant that the functions or informational materials contained in or accessed or downloaded through our Sites are free of computer viruses or other harmful components. In addition, although we make a good faith effort to update the content of our Sites periodically, we do not have a duty to update information contained in our Sites, and we will not be liable for any failure to update such information.

The Sites make no representation that information content provided on Sites is applicable or appropriate for use in locations outside the United States. You agree to comply with all applicable laws and local rules regarding the transmission of technical data, acceptable contents and online conduct.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold The Atlantic, its affiliates, licensors, suppliers, advertisers and sponsors, and its and their directors, officers, employees, consultants, agents and other representatives, harmless from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, costs (including reasonable attorneys' fees) and other expenses that arise directly or indirectly out of or from (a) your breach of this agreement, including any violation of the Terms of Service; (b) any allegation that any Content or other materials you submit to us or transmit to the Sites infringe or otherwise violate the copyright, trademark, trade secret or other intellectual property or other rights of any third party; and/or (c) your activities in connection with the Sites.

Special Agreement on Fee-Shifting and Choice of Law

If you attempt to bring any legal action against The Atlantic based in any way on its products or services, including the Sites, you agree that, in the event you do not prevail or The Atlantic does prevail, you will reimburse The Atlantic for any costs and attorneys fees associated with their defense of the action.

The use of the Sites and any claim or dispute relating to the Sites shall be governed by the laws of the District of Columbia, without regard to its conflicts of law principles. Exclusive venue for any claim shall be in the state and federal courts located in the District of Columbia. Use of the Sites is unauthorized in any jurisdiction that does not affect all provisions of these Terms of Service, including without limitation this paragraph.

Severability

If any provision or portion of these Terms of Service is held in whole or in part to be unenforceable for any reason, the remainder of that provision and of the entire agreement will be severable and will remain in effect, to the fullest degree consistent with the intent of this document.