Terms and Conditions

Terms of Use

Updated February 20, 2023

Overview

Culture.org and its affiliated sites (collectively, the “Site”) are Paradise Media brands, owned and operated by Paradise Media, LLC. and its affiliates (“Culture”, the “Company”, “we”, or “us”). Access to and use of the Site is subject to these terms and conditions of use (“Terms of Use”).

• “Site” or “Culture” shall include any information or services made available by Culture, regardless of the medium, and shall include, without limitation any affiliated websites, mobile applications, videos, products and applications we make available. We reserve the right at any time, and from time to time, to modify, suspend or discontinue (temporarily or permanently) the Site, or any part of the Site, with or without notice.
• The Site is not intended for users under 13 years of age. If you are under 13, do not use the Site and do not provide us with any personal information.
• We make no claims that the Site or any of its content is accessible or appropriate outside of the United States. Access to the Site may not be legal by certain persons or in certain countries. If you access the Site from outside the United States, you do so on your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws.

Medical Advice Disclaimer

The content of this Site is for informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any question you may have regarding a medical condition. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor or 911 immediately. Culture does not recommend or endorse any specific tests, physician, products, procedures, opinions, or other information that may be mentioned on the Site. Reliance on any information provided by Culture, Culture employees, other contributors appearing on the Site at the invitation of Culture, or other visitors to the Site is solely at your own risk.

Our Right to Modify These Terms of Use

We reserve the right to change these Terms of Use at any time. You should check this page regularly. The changes will appear on the Site and will be effective when we post the changes. Your continued use of the Site means you agree to and accept the changes.

Our Privacy Policy

Our Privacy Policy contains further information about how data is collected, used and made available on or by our Site. We encourage you to read it, here.

Culture.org Intellectual Property

Your Limited License to our Intellectual Property

The materials used and displayed on the Site, including but not limited to text, software, photographs, graphics, illustrations and artwork, video, music and sound, and names, logos, trademarks and service marks, are the property of Culture, Paradise Media, LLC. or its affiliates or licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark and other laws. Any such content may be used solely for your personal, non-commercial use. You agree not to modify, reproduce, retransmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish, broadcast or circulate any such material without the written permission of Culture. Culture grants you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the Site and any materials on the site for non-commercial purposes subject to these Terms of Use.

Culture.org Trademarks and Logos

The terms Culture, Culture.org and other Culture trademarks and services marks, and associated logos and all related names, logos, product and service names, designs and slogans are trademarks of Culture or its affiliates or licensors. You may not use such marks without the prior written permission of Culture. All other names, logos, product and service names, designs and slogans on the Site are the trademarks of their respective owners.

Reliance on Information on Site

We have no obligation to, and you should not expect us to, review content on our Site, including User Contributions (defined below) or contributions by our independent contributors.

About our Contributors

Culture seeks out content providers in particular subject matters as independent contractor contributors to the Site. Culture does not represent or guarantee that any contributor has achieved any particular level of expertise or knowledge or has any specific qualifications or credentials, without limitation, as to the subject matter to which their contributions relate. To the extent we refer to each of these contributors as an expert, you must understand we rely on the information they provide us and we are not obligated to independently verify or attempt to confirm any information they provide, nor their qualifications or credentials. Culture also is not obligated to monitor or independently research or verify any content they contribute. Contributors, even if characterized as expert, are not employees of Culture or its affiliates and Culture cannot and does not represent or warrant the accuracy, completeness or truthfulness of the qualifications or credentials of any contributor, nor of any other users of the Site.

Please do not rely on Site content, including User Contributions and content from our independent contractor contributors. Content is provided for general information purposes only and can never take into account your unique, personal circumstances and needs. You acknowledge and agree that any reliance or actions you take in violation of your agreement with us shall be at your sole and exclusive risk and Culture shall have no responsibility or liability to you whatsoever. You also acknowledge and agree that communications on or through the Site, whether with content providers or other users, are at your own risk and are not covered by any privilege or confidentiality obligation that might apply if you were to obtain your own professional advice (e.g., doctor-patient).

Prohibited Uses of the Site

You may use the Site only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. You agree not to use the Site:

• In any way that violates any applicable federal, state, local or international law or regulation.
• For the purpose of exploiting, harming or attempting to exploit or harm minors in any way by exposing them to inappropriate content, asking for personally identifiable information or otherwise.
• To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material, including any “junk mail”, “chain letter” or “spam” or any other similar solicitation.
• To impersonate or attempt to impersonate Culture, a Culture employee, another user or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using email addresses or screen names associated with any of the foregoing).
• To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Site, or which, as determined by us, may harm Culture or users of the Site or expose them to liability.

Additionally, you agree not to:

• “Scrape” or disaggregate data from the Site (whether by manual or automated means) for any commercial, marketing, or data compiling or enhancing purpose.
• Introduce any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful.
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage or disrupt any parts of the Site, the server on which the Site is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to the Site.
• Otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Site.

Content That You Make Available on the Site

User Contributions

The Site may contain message boards, chat rooms, personal web pages or profiles, forums, bulletin boards and other interactive features (collectively, “Interactive Services”) that allow users to post, submit, publish, display or transmit to other users or other persons (hereinafter, “post”) content or materials (collectively, “User Contributions”) on or through the Site.

If you voluntarily disclose personal information (e.g., user name, email address) on the Site, such as on a forum, chat room or on any other user or member-generated pages, that information can be viewed in search engines, collected and used by others and may result in unsolicited contact from other parties. We advise that you not post any personal or other sensitive information on our Site.

Any User Contribution you post to the Site will be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. By providing any User Contribution on the Site, you grant us and our affiliates and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors and assigns the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material for any purpose.

You represent and warrant that:

• You own or control all rights in and to the User Contributions and have the right to grant the license granted above to us and our affiliates and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors and assigns.
• All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use.

You understand and acknowledge that you are responsible for any User Contributions you submit or contribute, and you, not the Company, have full responsibility for such content, including its legality, reliability, accuracy and appropriateness. We are not responsible, or liable to any third party, for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Site.

Monitoring and Enforcement; Termination

We have the right to:

• Remove or refuse to post any User Contributions for any or no reason at our sole discretion.
• Take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Contribution violates the Terms of Use, including the content standards below, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Site or the public or could create liability for the Company.
• Disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that material posted by you violates their rights, including their intellectual property rights or their right to privacy.
• Take appropriate legal action, including without limitation, referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unauthorized use of the Site.
• Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Site for any or no reason, including without limitation, any violation of these Terms of Use.

Without limiting the foregoing, we have the right to fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information related to anyone posting any materials on or through the Site. YOU WAIVE AND HOLD HARMLESS THE COMPANY AND ITS AFFILIATES, LICENSEES AND SERVICE PROVIDERS FROM ANY CLAIMS RESULTING FROM ANY ACTION TAKEN BY ANY OF THE FOREGOING PARTIES DURING OR AS A RESULT OF ITS INVESTIGATIONS AND FROM ANY ACTIONS TAKEN AS A CONSEQUENCE OF INVESTIGATIONS BY EITHER THE COMPANY/SUCH PARTIES OR LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES.

However, we cannot and do not undertake to review all material before it is posted on the Site, and cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications or content provided by any user or third party. We have no liability or responsibility to anyone for performance or nonperformance of the activities described in this section.

Content Standards

These content standards apply to any and all User Contributions and use of Interactive Services. User Contributions must in their entirety comply with all applicable federal, state, local and international laws and regulations. Without limiting the foregoing, User Contributions must not:

• Contain any material which is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory or otherwise objectionable.
• Promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age.
• Infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person.
• Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable laws or regulations or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
• Be likely to deceive any person.
• Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act.
• Cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, harass, embarrass, alarm or annoy any other person.
• Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization.
• Promote commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes and other sales promotions, barter or advertising.
• Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if that is not the case.

Your Indemnification of Us

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Culture, and its officers, directors, owners, employees, agents, information providers, affiliates, licensors and licensees (collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) from and against any and all liability and costs, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the Indemnified Parties in connection with any claim arising out of (a) any User Contributions, or (b) breach by you or any user of your account of these Terms of Use or any representations, warranties and covenants contained in these Terms of Use. You shall cooperate fully and reasonably in the defense of any such claim. Culture reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.

WARRANTY DISCLAIMER

THE SITE IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OTHER THAN THOSE WARRANTIES WHICH ARE IMPOSED BY AND INCAPABLE OF EXCLUSION, RESTRICTION OR MODIFICATION UNDER THE LAWS APPLICABLE TO THESE TERMS OF USE. WE DO NOT ENDORSE AND ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE OR STATEMENT ON THE SITE. THE INFORMATION, FACTS, AND OPINIONS PROVIDED ARE NO SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL ADVICE.

LIABILITY DISCLAIMER

YOUR USE OF THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. NEITHER, Culture OR Paradise Media, LLC. NOR ANY OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES, DIVISIONS, AFFILIATES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES OR LICENSORS (INCLUDING OUR INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR CONTRIBUTORS) SHALL BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANYONE ELSE FOR ANY LOSS OR INJURY OR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE OR SIMILAR DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS OR USE OF, OR YOUR INABILITY TO ACCESS OR USE, THE SITE AND THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON THE SITE OR ARISING OUT OF ANY ACTION TAKEN IN RESPONSE TO OR AS A RESULT OF ANY INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON THE SITE. YOU HEREBY WAIVE ANY AND ALL CLAIMS AGAINST Culture, Paradise Media, LLC. AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES, DIVISIONS, AFFILIATES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES AND LICENSORS (INCLUDING OUR INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR CONTRIBUTORS) ARISING OUT OF YOUR USE OF THE SITE AND THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE THEREON.

Third Party Links, Advertisements, Websites and Content

We do not review or monitor any websites, advertisements, or other media linked to or available through the Site and are not responsible for the content of any such third party advertisements or linked websites. Prior to purchasing any third party products or services described on the Site, you are advised to verify pricing, product quality and other information necessary to make an informed purchase. Neither Culture nor its parent or any of its subsidiaries, divisions, affiliates, agents, representatives or licensors shall have any liability arising from your purchases of third party products or services based upon the information provided on the Site, and we shall not receive or review complaints regarding such purchases.

Disputes

These Terms of Use and any disputes arising out of or related to the Site shall be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York (without regard to conflict of law principles). In the event of any such dispute, you irrevocably consent to exclusive jurisdiction and venue in the courts located in the State of New York, County of New York.

ANY CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM YOU MAY HAVE ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OF USE OR THE SITE MUST BE COMMENCED WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUES, OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM IS PERMANENTLY BARRED AND YOU HEREBY AGREE TO WAIVE SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM AFTER SUCH DATE.

Waiver and Severability

No waiver by Culture of any term or condition set forth in these Terms of Use shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of Culture to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

If any provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of the Terms of Use will continue in full force and effect.

Entire Agreement

The Terms of Use constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and Culture with respect to the Site and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations and warranties, both written and oral, with respect to the Site.

DMCA Policy

Culture.org deals with copyright infringement in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). You may not post, upload, or otherwise place any content or information on the Site that belongs to a third party, unless you have the legal right to do so. If you believe in good faith that your copyrighted work has been reproduced on our Site without authorization in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, you may notify our designated copyright agent either by mail to Copyright Agent (Legal), Paradise Media, LLC., 28 Liberty Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10005 or in an email to SafeHarborAgent@Culture.com. This contact information is only for suspected copyright infringement. Please include the following:

• Your physical or electronic signature.
• Identification of the copyrighted work you believe to have been infringed or, if the claim involves multiple works on the Site, a representative list of such works.
• Identification of the material you believe to be infringing in a sufficiently precise manner to allow us to locate that material, such as the precise URL (web page) that it appeared on, along with any copies you have of that web page.
• Adequate information by which we can contact you (including your name, postal address, telephone number and email address).
• A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the copyrighted material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent or the law.
• A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the written notice is accurate and that you are authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
• Please be aware that if you knowingly materially misrepresent that material or activity on the Site is infringing your copyright, you may be held liable for damages (including costs and attorneys’ fees).

It is the policy of Culture to disable the accounts of users who repeatedly post infringing material on the Site.

Advertising Guidelines

These advertising guidelines (“Guidelines”) set forth standards that govern the placement of advertisements and sponsored content (collectively “Ads”) by any advertiser, agency or technology provider that Paradise Media, LLC. partners with (collectively, “Advertisers”). Advertisers must adhere to these Guidelines when placing Ads, including Ads purchased under the AAAA/IAB Standard Terms and Conditions, on websites or mobile properties owned or controlled by Paradise Media, LLC. (“Paradise Media”), including Culture.com (collectively “Culture”).

These Guidelines are intended to provide general parameters for Advertisers in connection with Ad creative and content served on Culture. They are not exhaustive and do not address every situation or issue that may arise in the course of business, particularly given the rate of change within the media and advertising industry. Accordingly, these Guidelines are subject to change from time to time in Paradise Media, LLC.’s sole discretion.

Advertisers are responsible for understanding and complying with all applicable laws and regulations, including FTC guidelines regarding advertising, native advertising disclosure, privacy, and data security. All Ads must be fair, truthful, and clearly distinguishable from editorial content. Advertisers are responsible for ensuring all Ads and related claims are adequately substantiated. Further, Advertisers must adhere to Paradise Media’s Prohibited Content Guidelines and Additional Standards for Advertisers, which are incorporated into these Guidelines and set forth below.

Ads served through networks or exchanges are reviewed on a regular basis and, in addition to any other remedies Paradise Media may have, Paradise Media, LLC. reserves the right to remove, without notice, any Ads that do not meet these Guidelines, regardless of whether the Ad was previously accepted by Paradise Media.

Prohibited Content

Ads may not contain or promote the following:

• Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco. Ads may not promote illegal drugs, illegal substances abuse of prescription drugs, use of Alcohol (except for beer and wine), or tobacco products, or any related paraphernalia thereto. Lawful products and services which promote quitting tobacco related products are permitted.
• Weapons/Violence. Ads may not promote the use, distribution, or making of firearms, ammunition, explosives, pyrotechnics or other weapons. Ads may not promote violence, cruelty, or physical or emotional harm to any person or animal.
• Illegal Activities/Gambling. Ads may not promote any illegal or other questionable activities which may be illegal in one or more jurisdictions, including without limitation hacking, counterfeiting, or other activities that may violate the intellectual property, privacy, publicity, or contractual rights of others. Ads may not contain or promote content related to scams, financial schemes, pyramid schemes or other fraudulent or illegal financial or investment opportunities. Ads may not promote casinos, gambling, betting, numbers games, sports or financial betting. Ads promoting state lotteries are permitted.
• Hate/Intolerance/Discrimination. Ads may not contain or promote hate speech, personal attacks, or discrimination toward any individual, group, country or organization.
• Obscenity/Indecency/Profanity. Ads may not contain or promote any obscene, indecent, profane or offensive words, images, sounds, videos or other content.
• Political/Religious. Ads may not contain hostile, offensive, inflammatory or hateful speech related to political or religious topics or groups. Ads may not exploit controversial political, social, or religious issues for commercial purposes.
• Sexual or Adult Content. Ads may not include full or partial nudity, depictions of people in explicit positions, or activities that are overly suggestive or sexually provocative. Ads will not contain text or images exposing anyone or anything involved in explicit sexual acts or lewd and lascivious behavior. Ads may not promote escort, dating, erotic message, pornography, or other sexual products or services.
• Disparagement/Defamation. Ads may not contain disparaging or defamatory information or content which tends to harm the reputation of Paradise Media or any other individual, group, or organization.
• Gross Depictions. Ads may not contain or promote content that is crude, vulgar, degrading or likely to shock or disgust.
• Militant/Extremism. Ads may not contain or promote extremely aggressive and combative behaviors or unlawful political measures, including individuals or groups advocating violence as a means to achieve their goals.
• Sensitive Content. Ads may not target sensitive categories such as financial status, medical conditions, mental health, criminal record, political affiliation, age, racial or ethnic origin, religious or philosophical affiliation or beliefs, sexual behavior or orientation, or trade union membership.
• Free Goods/Services. Ads may not distribute or promise to distribute any free goods and services.
• Targeted at Children. Ads may not specifically target children, including through cartoons or other similar content.
• Unverifiable Claims. Ad’s may not make confusing claims that reasonable consumers cannot readily understand and evaluate
• Before/After Images. Ad may not depict “before and after” images or images that contain unexpected or unlikely results.
• Health and Safety Claims. Ads may not promote actions likely to harm one’s health, such as bulimia, anorexia, binge drinking, or drug use. Ads may not make health claims that are not clearly substantiated. Advertisers may be required to submit supporting documentation to substantiate their products’ claims.
• Misleading/False/Deceptive: Ads may not contain any information or content that is potentially misleading, false, or deceptive, including content which is meant to deceptively generate clicks such as fake “close” buttons.
• Competitive to Culture/Affiliates. Ads may not promote direct competitors of Culture or any of its parent, affiliate, subsidiary or other related entity.

Additional Standards

Advertisers and Ads must adhere to the following standards:

• Audio/Animation. Ads may not include overly disruptive audio or animation that plays automatically.
• Popups/Downloads. Ads may not include lead ads, floating layers, pop-ups, surveys, or any digital downloads.
• Malicious Software. Ads may not contain malicious code, including malware, spyware, trojan horses, bugs or viruses.
• Phishing. Ads may not trap or trick a user into providing money or any account, personal or other sensitive information.
• Separation. Ads must contain clear borders and be displayed so they are unmistakably not part of Culture’s site content.
• Compatibility. Ads must function uniformly on both Apple and PC formats, as well as all major Internet browsers.
• Independence. Ads may not appear to compromise or influence Culture’s editorial independence from Advertisers.
• Endorsements. Ads may not create or imply the existence of any endorsement by Culture of any product, service or organization.
• Landing Pages. Landing pages associated with Ads must correspond to the Ads call to action and not engage in “bait and switch”.
• Intellectual Property. Ads may not use any copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade- secrets, patents or other proprietary rights of Paradise Media or Culture, or any third party, without prior written authorization. Advertisers may not alter or interfere with the readability or display of any Paradise Media or Culture trademarks, logos or designs.
• Data Collection. Ads may not include open-box forms to register users or collect personally identifiable information. Ads may not collect and sell mailing lists without the users’ express permission. Advertisers may not collect any personally identifiable information from Culture users or place any cookies, applets or other similar files — if those files transmit any personally identifiable information to Advertisers — on desktop computers or mobile devices of Culture users. Advertisers must handle data with appropriate care, not misuse any data which they are permitted to collect, nor collect any data for unclear purposes or without appropriate security measures.

Licensed & Third-Party Content

Licensed or third-party content is carefully reviewed by the Culture editorial team to ensure that it is aligned with our policies and standards. Any such content is labeled to notify you of its source.

Product Recommendations

The internet offers endless consumer choice, putting millions of products at your fingertips, and we want to do what we can to streamline the steps you need to take to find what you’re looking for quickly and reliably.

The expert writers and editors of Culture’s product review team help our users make the best purchase decisions by obsessively scouring the retail landscape (both online and off) to identify and research the best products for your healthy lifestyle and family. We receive an affiliate commission on some, but not all, of the products that we recommend if you decide to click through to the retailer site and make a purchase.

Trust: Our independent writers and testers pick products that are the best in their category and they do not know the terms of any of our affiliate partnerships, so you can be sure you are getting authentic and trustworthy recommendations. Furthermore, we buy all of the products that we test with our own money and never accept anything for free from manufacturers. We want to make sure we’re providing you with the most unbiased feedback that we can.

Product content: Curated lists of recommendations are written by writers with subject-matter expertise in every product category. Recommended products run the gamut from budget to splurge-worthy, and are not favored because of any loyalty to one specific retailer or brand. We make it a point to recommend products from reliable companies who deliver exemplary customer service, so you can have a seamless shopping experience. The availability of products is checked daily by a team of dedicated editors.

After a list is published, it is regularly revisited and updated, if needed, to ensure that existing recommendations are fresh, accurate, and helpful.

If you have questions, comments, or opinions you’d like to share with our product review team, please email partnerships@culture.org.