Our news organization is committed to editorial independence and transparency in all of our reporting. As such, any collaboration with external partners must align with our mission and uphold our commitment to editorial excellence.
We approach editorial collaborations with the following guidelines in mind:
- All collaborations must be disclosed to our readers, including the names of any partners and the nature of the collaboration. This disclosure will be made in a prominent location, at the conclusion of each article, and will be clearly labeled as a collaboration. Any financial support for a collaboration will also be prominently disclosed.
- Our editorial staff maintains full control over the content produced by our outlet as part of the collaboration. This includes maintaining control over the reporting, writing, editing, and fact-checking of all content produced as part of the collaboration. If there is disagreement on the final versions of stories any participant has the right to not publish a story that has been created from a collaboration.
- We will not enter into collaborations that compromise our ethical, content, and reporting standards or that would give the appearance of a conflict of interest. This includes collaborations with partners that have a financial interest in the outcome of the story or that have a history of attempting to influence our reporting.
In addition to these guidelines, we also have the following proactive measures in place to ensure the integrity of our collaborations:
- We will establish clear guidelines and expectations with partners before entering into a collaboration, and pursue only those projects that advance our editorial mission. This includes discussing and agreeing upon the goals and objectives of the collaboration, as well as the roles and responsibilities of each party. Collaboration partners will be expected to fact check their own pieces and to adhere to the highest journalistic standards for accuracy and fairness.
- We will review the work produced as part of the collaboration before it is published to ensure that it aligns with our standards and practices.
- We will have an open line of communication with partners throughout the collaboration to address any issues or concerns that may arise.
By adhering to these guidelines, we ensure that our collaborations enhance our reporting and serve the public interest.