(Last updated July 1, 2025)
[Company] speaks to—and listens to—readers across the black American cultural spectrum; reporting and publishing of the latest news, in-depth analysis and ideas about politics, economic, and social issues that impact our community. We are committed to journalism that’s factual and fair. We believe good-faith debate is in the public interest, and we welcome diverse views and voices to the search for common ground.
Our editorial policies and standards are set out below.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- ETHICS POLICY
- ORIGINALITY
- AI USAGE
- SOURCING
- BYLINE POLICY
- FACT-CHECKING
- ACCURACY AND CORRECTIONS
- SPONSORED CONTENT
- PRODUCT/SERVICE REVIEWS
- RESPECTABILITY AND DECENCY
- CASUALTY EVENTS
- CRIMINAL CASES AND ALLEGATIONS
- SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
- ACTIONABLE FEEDBACK
1. Ethics Policy
[Company] is committed to accurate, independent, ethical and responsible journalism. We report fairly; we attribute clearly; we correct mistakes transparently. Our editorial policies and processes are designed to support those values and we are open about them.
All reporters for [Company] must identify themselves clearly. They must never use deception or pretense to obtain information.
No [Company] reporter can accept remuneration of any kind in exchange for coverage. [Company] journalists must not cover any company, industry, political cause or candidate, and etc. in which they have a financial interest.
2. Originality
Our goal at [Company] is to provide original, useful, and unbiased content. All information must be verified, properly attributed, and may not infringe the copyright or anyone’s intellectual property rights. Any suggestion of plagiarism is investigated fully and is grounds for dismissal. We expect all contributors on the network to abide by all applicable laws, standards, and accepted journalistic practices including:
- Society of Professional Journalists Ethics Code
- Copyright Law of the United States
- FTC Guidelines on Disclosures
- Fair Use
3. AI Usage
[Company] journalists at times use generative Artificial Intelligence as one of the tools in our reporting, writing, editing, production and publishing. We are experimenting with generative AI, because we believe it offers opportunities to enhance our journalism, but we are mindful of its risks. When we rely primarily or solely on generative AI to produce news content, we clearly disclose this use, providing context about how we have used the tool. To that end, we operate with the following principles:
- AI can improve how we work, not change what we do. AI tools can help with research, for instance, or ease the editing of videos. But [Company] staff still bear the bulk of the responsibility for our work, from reporting to editing and fact-checking.
- AI tools can extend the distribution of our content. Our journalism is produced by humans, but AI tools can extend our reach by distributing it in new forms. Examples include the automated transcription of a podcast or a summary of an article.
- Privacy and copyright first. We will never upload any personal data or confidential and copyrighted information into generative AI services that may use such data to train their models.
- We will always be transparent. We will use labels to indicate if and how AI was involved in creating a piece of content. So far, there are three labels:
- Converted by AI: AI has been used to convert this piece of human-produced journalism from one form to another, for instance from an article to a narrated article.
- Summarized by AI: AI has been used to summarize this piece of human-produced journalism, for instance in the form of a short paragraph.
- Translated by AI: AI has been used to translate this piece of human-produced journalism, as with translations of video.
Any concerns, including regarding mistakes or misrepresentations due to AI, can be reported here.
4. Sourcing
[Company] will always be as specific as possible when identifying and describing sources used in an article. Only credible third-party sources will be used and they should be used only when editors have good reason to believe they would have been able to obtain the information in question. This also applies when citing reports from other media outlets, which editors would consider to be reliable sources on the subject in question.
[Company] reporters can use anonymous sources in rare cases where editors agree that the public good is served by the reporting and the source could be endangered or suffer other serious consequences if their identity were disclosed.
[Company] does not pay sources for information.
5. Byline Policy
Only on rare occasions, such as when it could put the reporter in danger, would a byline not be used.
6. Fact-Checking
[Company] journalists have responsibility for checking the facts of their articles. They should check dates, spelling of names, titles, timelines, numbers and other statistics. They should also hard-check any superlative—i.e., was this really the first, the worst, the only, the highest? Examples of sources used for fact-checking include the subjects of articles and what they have said themselves, witnesses to events, competent authorities, officials and official statements, verified reports on other media and social media and background reference materials. [Company] journalists should ask themselves not only what the source is for any information, but also how likely that source is to be accurate, how that source was able to establish that information and what interest the source has in disclosing such information at that time.
[Company] opinion writers must also base all their articles on verified facts.
All [Company] stories are reviewed by editors before publication and these editors will also check facts as merited. If you have noticed an issue you would like to bring to our attention, please contact us.
7. Accuracy And Corrections
Our editorial team is committed to producing high quality, factual content. If there is an error in a story, we will correct the error as quickly as possible. All corrections will be clearly labeled as such, and will include what was changed and when. When an article is factually correct, but the language is not as clear or detailed as necessary, the story may be updated without an editor’s note.
All reports of possible errors are investigated with an open mind. Any errors confirmed in published stories are quickly and transparently corrected. If you would like to report an error, please contact us.
8. Sponsored Content
[Company] is committed to independent, impartial, fair journalism. Our editorial content is not influenced by our advertisers. Every staff member and contributor is held accountable to a high standard of honesty and transparency.
We maintain a strict separation between advertising and editorial content. Our “Sponsored Content” is labeled to make clear that such content is provided by or on behalf of an advertiser or sponsor.
9. Product/Service Reviews
[Company] is dedicated to publishing unbiased, comprehensive reviews of products and services. Our product and service reviews are wholly independent and based on robust research and product testing. When readers visit “affiliate links” within our content, [Company] may receive commissions from purchases, but we never receive any compensation or consideration for the content of our recommendations.
[Company] writers and editors are prohibited from giving preferential treatment to any outside resource (company, publication, video, affiliate, website) based on their relationship with the person or company who authors or owns that resource.
All of our writers and editors are responsible for disclosing any potential conflicts of interest – any relationship, financial, or personal, with any source or resource that may compromise their ability to provide fair and impartial information. As with many publishers, our writers and editors are sometimes provided with complimentary products or services for review purposes. We are transparent and disclose when any valuable products or services are provided to our editorial teams. Our editorial staff and editorial contributors must not solicit gifts or services for personal purposes.
10. Respectability And Decency
In general, we avoid profanity, especially in headlines, and use it only in quotations where it is relevant and necessary.
We avoid publishing nude photos (or links to them) or grisly, graphic images.
We never spell out the n-word or other profoundly offensive racial epithets.
11. Casualty Events
[Company] is careful to be sensitive when covering any mass casualty events or deaths, including those of public figures. Coverage must be proportionate and [Company] reporters must think carefully about any coverage of children and other relatives, including partners or former partners. A [Company] reporter speaking to anyone involved in a traumatic event must show particular sensitivity.
[Company] also adheres to practices that minimize the possibility of contagion when writing about a suicide. We do not describe the method, give specifics or say how painful or otherwise it was. We do not speculate about a cause. We would not publish the contents of a suicide note unless there is a clear journalistic purpose to do so.
12. Criminal Cases And Allegations
[Company] does not rely on information from social media for breaking news or for details of suspected criminals or their motives.
When writing about criminal charges or allegations, we aim to be as specific and complete as possible. We should detail the precise charge, if any. We should say whether the accused person pleaded not guilty or whether they or a lawyer otherwise denied any allegations.
If there was a conviction, it should be clear on what count or counts.
Unless someone has been convicted, headlines and other text will state that the crime is alleged.
13. Social Media Policy
[Company] recognizes that social media provides unique opportunities for staff to participate in interactive discussions and share information on particular topics.
[Company] journalists must be aware that personal social media accounts may portray them as someone with a bias, or with a personal or partisan agenda and that this could raise questions about their—and [Company]’s—impartiality.
Any engagements must be respectful and civil at all times, without profanity or ad hominem attacks.
[Company] journalists should avoid posting or sending anything through social media that includes or could be perceived as ethnic slurs, obscene, sexist or discriminatory comments, threats of violence, or other similar types of remarks.
Nobody at [Company] should post anything on personal social media channels that they wouldn’t say to a large, diverse, unfamiliar crowd of individuals.
It is not [Company]’s intention to constrain public facing staff members from acknowledging their own experiences.
14. Actionable Feedback
[Company] welcomes feedback from readers and the global communities that it covers to shape and enhance its reporting.
We encourage comments on our articles and want to generate open and thoughtful conversations in which readers can share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space.
Anyone may also provide feedback via our contact form.