Community Guidelines
Rules of the Forums at AdoptionVoices.com
These rules apply to any message boards, chat rooms, e-mail discussion lists, free-email, or any other community websites or services ("Community Websites") operated by Adoption Media, LLC. ("AdoptionVoices.com").
1. Respectful Participation Required: While we encourage members to share from their experiences, we do ask that you do so in a manner that is both kind and respectful to the person you are responding to. Please remember that adoption is a very emotional topic for most all of our participants in one way or another. There is a big difference between offering a differing opinion and kicking the dog while its down. We ask that all members be sensitive to the differing emotions in adoption and not use the forums as a platform to promote an agenda which is not supportive of our members or adoption.
2. No personal attacks: Personal attacks of any kind, public or private, will not be tolerated. AdoptionVoices.com chat rooms, message boards and journals are intended to be a positive, safe place for everyone. You are welcome to disagree with a member, but calling them names or flaming their character is not allowed. If you have a personal issue to discuss with a member, please take it off the boards and discuss it via PM.
3. Photo and Video Sharing: Because of the nature of the internet, we ask that you not share images or video recordings that contain full frontal nudity, regardless of the nature. Tastefully done artistic shots are welcome, but must be 'family friendly'. Please keep in mind, any and all images and videos shared on AdoptionVoices.com are open to the public and can be viewed by anyone.
4. No profanity: Vulgarities, obscenities, name-calling, character assassinations or mockery are not allowed on any of the AdoptionVoices.com community of websites. While there are appropriate topics of a mature nature, the vocabulary used needs to remain family friendly.
5. Solicitation of expectant parents: AdoptionVoices.com is NOT a place for adoptive parents and adoption professionals to solicit expectant parents. With the amount of traffic we have at AdoptionVoices.com, potential birthparents get "pounced on" from dozens of different people if this rule is not strictly observed. We are committed to making AdoptionVoices.com a place where potential birthparents feel safe. It is not appropriate for adoption professionals or hopeful parents to post "I can help" messages or links/website addresses for potential birth parents to visit or to send this type of e-mail or private message to potential birth parents. Additionally, it isn't appropriate to respond to a potential birth parents message with an email address and ask them to contact you that way.
6. Caution to expectant parents considering adoption: Are you pregnant and considering adoption? For your safety, we strongly recommend that you do not select adoptive parents or an adoption professional via social networking sites like AdoptionVoices.com. We have no way of knowing which parents on the site are qualified to adopt, and which professionals are reputable. Visit ParentProfiles.com, a service of Adoption Profiles, LLC, to find information on hundreds of hopeful adoptive parents who have each met the requirements to adopt in their state. Visit AdoptionDirectory.com to find an adoption professional.
7. Treatment of Moderators & Administrators: Any form of moderator or administrator harassment, including insults, personal attacks and character assassination done either in public or via private message can result in a ban of your account. If you disagree with actions taken by the moderating team, the proper procedure for voicing that disagreement is via Private Message or Email. For privacy reasons we can not and will not discuss the reason someone else's account was banned or removed, either in public or in private. Moderating decisions are made based on a number of factors, and the action that resulted in the moderating decision is often no longer available for public view. It is inappropriate for users to create threads denouncing the actions of the moderating team and doing so will result in further moderator action, up to and including account banning.
8. Regarding Minors: Identifying information about minors (especially foster children) should never be posted. The minimum age for the release of information in all fifty states is at least eighteen, therefore the use of the site to search for someone under the age if eighteen is prohibited. Additionally if you are adopting from a public or privatized foster care system, either domestically or internationally, please remember to respect the foster parent’s privacy by not posting their identifying information openly on the forums.
9. Excessive Posting & Self Promotion: Please limit the number of identical posts to the most relevant three groups. More than three duplicate messages comes across as spammy. In addition to limiting the number of identical posts to three, we also ask that you not use the site to 'self promote' your personal blog or website. If you have addressed a topic that is specifically related to a current discussion and you'd like to direct a user to that post, that's fine. However, it is inappropriate to post links to your site/blog throughout the site in order to increase your reach/traffic.
10. No Solicitation or Marketing: Self promotion of adoption services (products) is not allowed anywhere on AdoptionVoices.com. This includes posting of available situations or promotion of hopeful adoptive parents. AdoptionVoices.com offers a variety of advertising and marketing solutions to meet all types of budgets. If you would like more information on how you can advertise on AdoptionVoices.com, please send an email to sales@familyads.com.
11. Moderation, Editing and Banning: AdoptionVoices.com reserves the right to edit, delete or otherwise moderate any postings made to its community of sites without warning or explanation. Moderators regularly check the site for inappropriate messages and material. Messages containing such material will be deleted or edited. Members who require moderation may be banned without warning or explanation.
These rules apply to any message boards, chat rooms, e-mail discussion lists, free-email, or any other community websites or services ("Community Websites") operated by Adoption Media, LLC. ("AdoptionVoices.com").
1. Respectful Participation Required: While we encourage members to share from their experiences, we do ask that you do so in a manner that is both kind and respectful to the person you are responding to. Please remember that adoption is a very emotional topic for most all of our participants in one way or another. There is a big difference between offering a differing opinion and kicking the dog while its down. We ask that all members be sensitive to the differing emotions in adoption and not use the forums as a platform to promote an agenda which is not supportive of our members or adoption.
2. No personal attacks: Personal attacks of any kind, public or private, will not be tolerated. AdoptionVoices.com chat rooms, message boards and journals are intended to be a positive, safe place for everyone. You are welcome to disagree with a member, but calling them names or flaming their character is not allowed. If you have a personal issue to discuss with a member, please take it off the boards and discuss it via PM.
3. Photo and Video Sharing: Because of the nature of the internet, we ask that you not share images or video recordings that contain full frontal nudity, regardless of the nature. Tastefully done artistic shots are welcome, but must be 'family friendly'. Please keep in mind, any and all images and videos shared on AdoptionVoices.com are open to the public and can be viewed by anyone.
4. No profanity: Vulgarities, obscenities, name-calling, character assassinations or mockery are not allowed on any of the AdoptionVoices.com community of websites. While there are appropriate topics of a mature nature, the vocabulary used needs to remain family friendly.
5. Solicitation of expectant parents: AdoptionVoices.com is NOT a place for adoptive parents and adoption professionals to solicit expectant parents. With the amount of traffic we have at AdoptionVoices.com, potential birthparents get "pounced on" from dozens of different people if this rule is not strictly observed. We are committed to making AdoptionVoices.com a place where potential birthparents feel safe. It is not appropriate for adoption professionals or hopeful parents to post "I can help" messages or links/website addresses for potential birth parents to visit or to send this type of e-mail or private message to potential birth parents. Additionally, it isn't appropriate to respond to a potential birth parents message with an email address and ask them to contact you that way.
6. Caution to expectant parents considering adoption: Are you pregnant and considering adoption? For your safety, we strongly recommend that you do not select adoptive parents or an adoption professional via social networking sites like AdoptionVoices.com. We have no way of knowing which parents on the site are qualified to adopt, and which professionals are reputable. Visit ParentProfiles.com, a service of Adoption Profiles, LLC, to find information on hundreds of hopeful adoptive parents who have each met the requirements to adopt in their state. Visit AdoptionDirectory.com to find an adoption professional.
7. Treatment of Moderators & Administrators: Any form of moderator or administrator harassment, including insults, personal attacks and character assassination done either in public or via private message can result in a ban of your account. If you disagree with actions taken by the moderating team, the proper procedure for voicing that disagreement is via Private Message or Email. For privacy reasons we can not and will not discuss the reason someone else's account was banned or removed, either in public or in private. Moderating decisions are made based on a number of factors, and the action that resulted in the moderating decision is often no longer available for public view. It is inappropriate for users to create threads denouncing the actions of the moderating team and doing so will result in further moderator action, up to and including account banning.
8. Regarding Minors: Identifying information about minors (especially foster children) should never be posted. The minimum age for the release of information in all fifty states is at least eighteen, therefore the use of the site to search for someone under the age if eighteen is prohibited. Additionally if you are adopting from a public or privatized foster care system, either domestically or internationally, please remember to respect the foster parent’s privacy by not posting their identifying information openly on the forums.
9. Excessive Posting & Self Promotion: Please limit the number of identical posts to the most relevant three groups. More than three duplicate messages comes across as spammy. In addition to limiting the number of identical posts to three, we also ask that you not use the site to 'self promote' your personal blog or website. If you have addressed a topic that is specifically related to a current discussion and you'd like to direct a user to that post, that's fine. However, it is inappropriate to post links to your site/blog throughout the site in order to increase your reach/traffic.
10. No Solicitation or Marketing: Self promotion of adoption services (products) is not allowed anywhere on AdoptionVoices.com. This includes posting of available situations or promotion of hopeful adoptive parents. AdoptionVoices.com offers a variety of advertising and marketing solutions to meet all types of budgets. If you would like more information on how you can advertise on AdoptionVoices.com, please send an email to sales@familyads.com.
11. Moderation, Editing and Banning: AdoptionVoices.com reserves the right to edit, delete or otherwise moderate any postings made to its community of sites without warning or explanation. Moderators regularly check the site for inappropriate messages and material. Messages containing such material will be deleted or edited. Members who require moderation may be banned without warning or explanation.
© 2012 Created by Adoption Voices.
