Content Philosophy
Shade Media Group is committed to upholding high ethical standards. In the modern day, we believe it is more important than ever to preserve humanity in journalism and to take a responsible and conscientious approach to ensuring our work does not inflict harm upon others.
Ethics
It goes without saying, that we follow the five core principles of ethical journalism, as outlined by the Ethical Journalism Network.
1. Truth & Accuracy
Journalists cannot always guarantee ‘truth’, but getting the facts right is the cardinal principle of journalism. We should always strive for accuracy, give all the relevant facts we have and ensure that they have been checked. When we cannot corroborate information we should say so.
2. Independence
Our writers do not act formally or informally on behalf of special interests whether political, corporate or cultural. Editors should be made aware of any conflicts of interests and act accordingly.
3. Fairness & Impartiality
Articles should be balanced and add context.
4. Humanity
Journalists should do no harm. We should be aware of the impact our words can have on the lives of others. We should take special care and attention when reporting on sensitive issues or those that may cause upset. If we do not feel an article can be written without causing pain to others, we do not write that article.
5. Accountability
When we make mistakes, we will correct them and make a sincere expression of regret where that is appropriate. We listen to the concerns of our audience and provide remedies when we have been unfair.
We will not intrude on individuals’ right to privacy. We will tackle issues that involve grief with sensitivity. It goes without saying, we will not speculate about causes of death and when reporting suicide will not give excessive detail about the method used.
Furthermore, the Shade Media Group endeavors to follow the guidance given by The Society of Professional Journalists in their Code of Ethics.
Fact-checking
The Shade Media Group takes pride in its editorial standards and to that end employs editorial staff whose primary role within the company is to ensure the accuracy of the content that our writers produce.
The following policies are in place to ensure facts are upheld:
1. Writers must credit and link to the source of any information they are reporting.
2. Writers are told to question the validity of sources and to take care of information they are reporting, especially where it may touch upon a sensitive or controversial topic.
3. Writers are expected not to write about topics when they feel they do not have sufficient knowledge to do so accurately.
4. Writers must clearly distinguish between opinion, conjecture and fact.
5. Editors review articles across our network and seek confirmation for any claims they feel may be inaccurate.
Clickbait
The Shade Media Group stands strongly opposed to any form of clickbait.
Where there are breaches, these are swiftly resolved through article editing or deletion, and disciplinary action is taken against writers who intentionally employ clickbait.
Plagiarism
Any writer who is found to have used the work of others without accreditation will immediately face disciplinary action.
Rumors, Speculation & Allegations
Policies are in place to stop any of the following:
1. Misleading Titles
2. Rude language and slang.
3. Law and lawsuits – including ongoing and past court cases.
4. Sex and nudity.
5. Sexual abuse, domestic abuse, and any other form of abuse. If reporting a rumor (from a legitimate and specified source) make clear in the headline that this is a rumor and not fact.
6. Violence, crimes & gore.
7. Allegations and unproven claims.
8. Racism, transphobia, homophobia, bullying or hate-crimes.
9. War.
10. Anything else we deem may cause offense to a reader.
We do not include tweets featuring swear words, nudity, violence unproven accusations or wrongdoing, etc.
Corrections
We are responsive to feedback from readers and take concerns seriously.
Our editorial and management teams are charged with ensuring that any errors are swiftly identified and remedied. As well as taking editorial care prior to publication, our editorial team routinely audits articles, checking for any possible factual inaccuracies.