SmartNews Community Guidelines

Hello SmartNews users, we’re glad you’re here with us!

SmartNews wants to create a respectful and safe community on our platform, and as the community evolves, we will shape our visions together with you to create an authentic and safe place for expression and discussion.

To help us foster and grow this community, please read and respect the following guidelines, which are intended to ensure every user feels welcome and respected. They should inform you of the boundaries in our community. Violations may result in removal of comments or your account, or further restrictions.

1. At SmartNews we respect a diversity of viewpoints and aim to be a source for varied content on timely issues. That means people of all affiliations may have a place on our platform as long as they are respectful of others and follow our guidelines. SmartNews does not tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations.
2. SmartNews has zero tolerance for the following content, which violates our terms of use and must be, under all circumstances, avoided. SmartNews content must neither include nor promote:

   1. Offensive or insensitive language
   2. Threats or incitement of violence or terrorism
   3. The sale or use of weapons
   4. Spam
   5. Child sexual exploitation
   6. Abuse/harassment
   7. Suicide or self-harm
   8. The sale of illegal or regulated services or goods, such as explosives, human organs, and endangered species
   9. Sensitive media, including graphic violence and adult content
   10. Misinformation or fake news
   11. Impersonation: Comments and profiles intended to impersonate a person or a publisher are not allowed
3. While SmartNews will make its best effort to monitor user-generated content, we additionally need you, as a member of our community, to help keep it safe by flagging anything that you believe to be inappropriate.
4. SmartNews recommends you refrain from posting any private information because all users’ posts are public. Please do not post any confidential information, including:
   

   1. Personal ID: address, phone number, driver’s license, Social Security number, etc.
   2. Private details about connections and email correspondence
   3. Usernames and passwords
   4. Private documents that show bank account, personal financial or medical information
   5. Private photos exposing unlawful activities
   6. Private medical information
5. To keep our community safe, SmartNews reserves the right to remove or temporarily block any content and any user account for any reason at any time. Users who create content shall grant SmartNews the right to use the content for marketing and promotional purposes. For more information, please refer to: SmartNews Terms of Service
6. Delivering safe and effective pandemic-related information is critical to our mission. SmartNews forbids content that spreads COVID-related and vaccine misinformation that contradicts the World Health Organization’s (WHO) medical information. We will limit the display of the following comments you made if that contradicts WHO’s guidance on:

   1. Vaccination
   2. Diagnosis and treatment
   3. Transmission and prevention
   4. Social distancing and self-isolation guidelines
   5. The existence of COVID-19
7. Do not over-post or hijack the conversation on the commenting floor: Repeatedly posting about the same topic is a way to abuse our community space. Over-posting may result in a suspension of one's posting privileges or one’s SmartNews account. If a user is over-posting, you may report their account.
8. We understand misunderstandings happen and sometimes you don’t mean to violate our community guidelines. Note if your content is removed and you think we made a mistake, you can appeal by contacting us. If you have any questions, please contact support@smartnews.com. In the email, please attach your Device Token and describe what happened.