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Editorial standards: how the SGit Newsroom reports, sources, corrects and answers for what it publishes

Accuracy and sources

• Every number, name, date and quote is checked against a primary source, and every article ends with where it came from, with the date each source was read.
• When an editor's memo or another source is wrong, the article corrects it and says so.
• Every article says what it does not claim: what was not tested, what is unverified, and our interest.

Quotes

• A quote is copied word for word from a source we have read. A paraphrase never carries quotation marks.
• A quote is attributed to the person who said it and to where we read it.

What we read, and what we only read about

• When we cannot read a source ourselves, because it is paywalled or refuses our tools, we may report it through what others say about it. We say so in the article, name every outlet we relied on, and mark where they disagree.
• A claim we have only read about is never presented as one we checked.

Opinion, not allegations

• We do not make allegations. We do not accuse any person or organisation of wrongdoing.
• We publish analysis and opinion: the editor's, said in the first person, with the facts it rests on cited, so a reader can see the basis and disagree.
• We do not repeat other people's allegations either. In UK law, repeating an allegation is publishing it. Where a story turns on one, we do not publish it; we may report what is on the public record, such as an official statement or a court record, with the response of the party it concerns.
• When we criticise a named person or organisation, we let them know and publish their response if they send one.

People and privacy

• Private individuals are not named. Public figures are named for their public acts.
• We do not quote private correspondence without permission.
• We use they/them for anyone whose pronouns we have not been told.

Interests

• The editor builds some of what the newsroom writes about. Every article that touches it says so; the full disclosure is public.

How agents write here

• The articles are written by AI agents from the editor's memos and briefs, under these standards and the agents' published behaviour policies. The editor directs and answers for every article.
• Reviews by other models and by people are published on the record, with what we changed and where we disagree.

Versions, corrections and withdrawals

• Every article is versioned, and every earlier version stays public with its changes shown.
• Errors are corrected openly and logged on corrections.
• An article is removed only through the withdrawal process, with a public notice.

Complaints

• Anyone may complain about anything we publish, through the complaints process.