Statesville Free News LLC (“we,” “us,” or “our”) operates iredellfreenews.com. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information when you visit our website.
Information We Collect
Comments
When you leave a comment, we collect:
- Your name (as provided by you)
- Your email address (not displayed publicly)
- Your comment content
- Your IP address and browser user agent (for spam detection)
An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. See the Gravatar service privacy policy. After approval of your comment, your profile picture is visible to the public in the context of your comment.
Additionally, your IP address and user agent will be shared with the Akismet service to prevent spam. See the Akismet Privacy Policy.
Email Newsletter
When you subscribe to our email newsletter, we collect:
- Your email address
We use Mailchimp to manage our mailing list. Mailchimp may also collect information about email opens and link clicks. See Mailchimp’s Legal Policies.
Analytics & Advertising
We use Automattic Jetpack, Google Analytics, and Google AdSense, which may collect:
- IP address
- Browser type and version
- Pages visited and time spent
- Geographic location (city/region level)
- Device information
- Referring website
Cookies
Our site and third-party services use cookies to:
- Optionally remember your comment information
- Analyze site traffic (Automattic Jetpack, Google Analytics)
- Deliver relevant advertisements (Google AdSense)
- Track email campaign performance (Mailchimp)
How We Use Your Information
- To display and manage comments on our articles
- To prevent spam and abuse
- To understand site traffic and improve user experience
- To deliver relevant advertising
Third-Party Services
- Automattic Jetpack: Collects anonymous usage data. See Automattic’s Privacy Policy.
- Google Analytics: Collects anonymous usage data. See Google’s Privacy Policy.
- Google AdSense: Delivers ads based on your interests. See Google’s Ad Settings.
Your browser’s Do Not Track signals are respected by our site where technically feasible.
Embedded Content from Other Websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Data Retention
- Comments are retained indefinitely unless you request deletion
- Analytics data is retained according to Automattic’s and Google’s data retention policies
Your Rights
You may:
- Request deletion of your comments by contacting us
- Unsubscribe from our email newsletter using the link in any email
- Opt out of interest-based advertising via Google Ad Settings
- Disable cookies in your browser settings (may affect site functionality)
Children’s Privacy
We do not knowingly collect information from children under 18.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy occasionally. The most recent change to this policy was published on March 5th, 2026.
Contact Us
For privacy-related questions or requests, utilize our contact page.