Attribution is mandatory
Every published story names the outlet that first reported it and links directly to the original. The attribution block sits above the article body. It is not collapsed, not truncated, not hidden behind a click and not removed after publication. A story with no source cannot reach the site.
When a story draws on more than one source, each is named inside the piece and the attribution block points to the primary one.
Originality over paraphrasing
Rewriting means writing a new account, not swapping synonyms in someone else's sentences. Every story is scored for originality and the score is displayed to readers. We do not publish a rewrite that is a near-copy of the source. Where the source is the only available account, we say so plainly rather than dressing it up.
The source's original headline and summary are stored for review. They are never fetched by the public site and never rendered as our own content.
Accuracy and uncertainty
- We state what the source reported, not what we assume it implies.
- We distinguish figures, counts and estimates from one another.
- Where the source does not quantify something, we say the supplied account does not quantify it.
- We do not bring in facts the source did not publish to make a story read better.
- We do not speculate about people's motives, health or private lives.
Headlines and standfirsts
Headlines must be supported by the body of the story. We do not use a claim in the headline that the piece then walks back. Standfirsts state what the source reported and never turn an allegation into a finding.
Language about people
People are described as the source described them. We do not use slurs, we do not speculate about protected characteristics, and we do not publish gratuitous detail about victims. We do not depict real people's likenesses in generated cover art.
Corrections
Factual errors are corrected promptly. Substantive corrections are recorded, and the correction is visible on the story. See corrections for the procedure and the log.
Comments, posts and moderation
Signed-in readers can discuss stories. The following are removed and can lead to a reader being suspended:
- Harassment, threats, or targeting a person or group with abuse.
- Hate speech, including slurs and dehumanising language.
- Sharing private information about anyone — address, workplace, contact details, medical history.
- Deliberate misinformation, including fabricated quotes or links to fabricated documents.
- Spam, undisclosed promotion, or coordinated campaigning.
- Impersonating another reader, a journalist, an official or the desk.
Any reader can report a comment or post. A report increments the item's flag count and sends it to the moderation queue for review. Moderators can see the flag count on the item itself. Nothing is removed just because it is unpopular — downvotes are not moderation.
Karma
Karma is awarded only for reactions a reader actually receives: upvotes, likes, insight marks and reposts on their comments and posts. Reading, posting, or reacting to others earns nothing. Karma cannot be bought, transferred or gamed through a third party, and it is never used to decide what gets published.
Conflicts of interest
The desk publishes no sponsored content and accepts no payment for coverage. There is no advertising on story pages. If we ever introduce commercial content it will be labelled as such and kept out of the news feed.
Insider Watch and financial content
Insider Watch reports filings and disclosures. It is not investment advice and must not be read as a recommendation. Filings are reported as documents: who filed, what security, what the document states, and when. Where a filing is ambiguous, we say so rather than interpreting it.
Health, legal and public-safety content
Health stories report what the cited study or authority published, including its limits. We do not diagnose, we do not recommend treatments, and we do not tell readers to change prescribed medication. Legal stories report filings and proceedings and describe people as charged, accused or alleged unless a court has concluded otherwise.
Answers about how a story was made
If you want to know why a story was published, why it was blocked, or what our rewrite changed, ask. Use the contact page and quote the story link.