Privacy Policy.

Overview & Our Editorial Ethos

The Youth Prism ("we," "us," or "our") was founded in 2025 by Arpita and Manan as an editorial development platform designed for high school and university thinkers, researchers, and writers. Our mission is to take young people seriously by offering rigorous, constructive editorial mentorship and publishing perspectives that mainstream journalism overlooks.

Unlike commercial media corporations that monetize clickbait and sell audience profiles to programmatic advertising networks, The Youth Prism exists for educational, literary, and civic purposes. We treat privacy as an essential element of creative safety. You should feel comfortable pitching ambitious ideas, developing your draft, and sharing your perspective without fear of predatory data practices.

Scope of this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information gathered through our web platforms, including:

• Our primary website located at https://typ.zyanix.shop and associated subdomains;
• Editorial submission forms (including our Write For Us pitching portal);
• Recruitment, fellowship, and team application portals (Join Us);
• General contact and event registration inquiries;
• Email newsletters (such as our Substack distribution or direct community announcements).

This policy does not cover third-party platforms that you may use to read our cross-posted work (e.g., Medium, Substack, LinkedIn, or Instagram), each of which maintains its own respective privacy terms and cookie practices.

Information We Collect

We organize the information we handle into two categories: information you provide to us directly, and routine technical data captured when you interact with our website.

We do not collect payment card information, government ID numbers, or biometric data. The Youth Prism does not execute commercial e-commerce transactions on this website.

Youth & Student Privacy Protections

As a platform founded by youth for youth, protecting minors and students is integral to everything we do. We align our principles with global standards including the United States Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), GDPR-Kids provisions, and international child rights frameworks.

• Age Consideration: Our platform is intended for high school students, university writers, and adult readers (generally ages 13 and above). We do not knowingly collect personal contact information from children under 13 without verifiable parental or educator consent.
• Protective Bylines: If a writer is a minor and prefers not to publish their legal surname or school name for personal safety, college admissions discretion, or family preferences, we gladly honor pen names, initials, or first-name-only bylines upon request.
• No Targeted Profiling: We do not build behavioral advertising profiles of student contributors or readers.
• Parental Inquiries: Parents or legal guardians may contact us at theyouthprism@gmail.com at any time to inspect, modify, or request the removal of content or personal information submitted by their child.

How We Use Your Information

We process personal data strictly for legitimate educational, editorial, and platform operations:

1. Delivering Editorial Mentorship: Reviewing submitted essays, providing line edits, structural notes, fact-checking queries, and development feedback to help young writers refine their voice.
2. Public Publishing & Distribution: Publishing finalized articles, essays, and opinion pieces on our site alongside approved author bylines and biographical notes.
3. Editorial Communication: Notifying writers regarding pitch acceptance, publication schedules, revision deadlines, and interview invitations.
4. Community & Events: Organizing student journalism workshops, writing circles, webinars, and collaborative panels.
5. Platform Security & Optimization: Maintaining site responsiveness, detecting malicious activity, verifying genuine submissions, and optimizing reading accessibility.

Bylines, Author Profiles & Public Attribution

One of our core founding values is: "Every writer is named, credited, and acknowledged for their work. Your byline is yours. Always."

When an article is published on The Youth Prism, the following elements will be accessible publicly to anyone on the internet:

• The author's published name or agreed-upon pen name;
• Author biographical blurbs provided during submission (e.g., student status, academic interests, or personal motto);
• Approved social or portfolio links (such as Substack, Medium, LinkedIn, or Twitter/X);
• The full text, headlines, and approved visual graphics accompanying the article.

We will never publicly disclose private email addresses, home addresses, phone numbers, or private editorial correspondence without explicit written consent.

Third-Party Services & Information Sharing

The Youth Prism does not sell, lease, or rent personal data. We disclose information only under specific, transparent circumstances:

• Infrastructure & Hosting: We host our website and assets using secure web infrastructure providers (such as GitHub Pages, Netlify, or cloud hosting) that deliver content securely to your browser.
• Submission Forms & Communications: Pitch submissions and contact queries may be handled via Formspree, Google Workspace, or direct encrypted email channels. These vendors process data exclusively on our instructions according to confidentiality terms.
• Newsletter Distribution: Our email list is distributed through dedicated providers (such as Substack). You can opt out at any time via the one-click unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email.
• Legal Compliance & Safety: We may disclose information if required by a valid legal subpoena, court order, or when necessary to protect the physical safety, integrity, or fundamental rights of our team, authors, or the public.

Cookies & Technical Analytics

We aim to keep our digital footprint lightweight and respectful:

• Essential Local Storage: We use basic browser storage or session cookies to retain interface preferences (such as light/dark mode if enabled, or closing dismissible banner notices).
• Aggregated Privacy-Friendly Metrics: We may measure aggregate visitor metrics (such as page view counts, top-read articles, and browser compatibility) to ensure our servers handle traffic smoothly. We do not use intrusive cross-site fingerprinting or third-party ad retargeting pixels.
• Controlling Cookies: You can configure your browser settings to decline or delete cookies at any time. Our publication remains fully readable even with cookies and local storage disabled.

Data Retention & Security Measures

We implement thoughtful administrative and technical safeguards to keep personal information secure:

• Published Articles: Once published, articles become part of our historical editorial archive. Bylines and article texts remain public indefinitely to preserve the historical record of student journalism and author portfolios, subject to our correction and retraction policy.
• Unaccepted Pitches & Drafts: Submissions that are not published are retained only as long as necessary for editorial dialogue and feedback, after which private drafts can be purged upon request.
• Security Controls: All traffic to The Youth Prism is encrypted in transit using standard HTTPS / TLS protocols. Internal access to author submission records and email inquiries is restricted strictly to active founding editors and designated editorial leads.

Your Rights & Choices

Regardless of your geographic location, The Youth Prism respects the fundamental privacy rights of our readers and contributors:

• Access & Portability: You may request a summary of the personal contact data we hold about you.
• Correction & Updates: If your biographical information, institutional affiliation, or social links change, let us know and we will promptly update your published author profile.
• Right to be Forgotten / Retraction: Under special circumstances (e.g., student safety concerns, legal name changes, or sensitive circumstances), authors may request the removal or anonymization of their byline or article. We handle these requests on a compassionate, case-by-case basis.
• Opt-Out of Communications: You can unsubscribe from our email dispatches at any moment using the link provided in any newsletter, or by emailing us directly.

Updates to this Privacy Policy

As The Youth Prism expands into new editorial initiatives, print anthologies, workshops, or reader features, we may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When changes occur:

• We will update the "Last Reviewed" date displayed prominently at the top of this page;
• For material modifications that affect author rights or data practices, we will post a prominent notice on our homepage or newsletter prior to the changes taking effect;
• Continued use of our platform following posted revisions constitutes acceptance of the updated terms.

Contact & Editorial Inquiries

If you have questions, feedback, or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy or how your personal information is managed at The Youth Prism, our editorial team is here to listen and help.