Alpha News Statement of Journalistic Standards

Alpha News is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit newsroom based in Minnesota with a mission of reporting stories that go untold by our state’s mainstream media. We are committed to telling the truth and conducting ourselves in accordance with the highest journalistic standards.

Guiding Principles

• • We are committed to maintaining editorial independence. As a nonprofit newsroom, Alpha News is funded by countless donors, big and small, all across the state. All decisions about the stories we write and publish are made by our reporters and editors — and them alone.
  • We always seek to tell the truth. Our journalists are expected to be honest, accurate, truthful and fair.
    • If a report includes adverse information about people or organizations, we do our best to give them the opportunity to respond. However, a lack of a response by itself will not be considered a reason not to publish a story.
  • We clearly distinguish news from opinion. All opinion pieces are labeled with our “opinion & commentary” label and published under our commentary section.
  • We always strive for accuracy. Our staff members are expected to take reasonable steps to ensure the accuracy of information that we publish and note our sources.

Corrections, Plagiarism, and Attribution Policies

• • We take all complaints about a story’s accuracy seriously. When a story is proven to contain objectively false information, we add a correction at the bottom of the article. This correction will include a note on what information was removed, when, and why, as well as any other changes that have been made.
    • We will retract stories only in those cases where we deem it appropriate and then we will publish a note on our website explaining why.
    • If readers have a complaint about a story’s accuracy, they can contact our staff at: pbagnpghf@nycunarjf.bet
  • Plagiarism is never tolerated. We always seek to give credit to other journalists and news outlets for their work.

Anonymous Sources Policy

• • We believe on-the-record is always best. We use anonymous sources sparingly to provide important information that cannot be obtained through on-the-record sources.
    • Reporters should disclose the identity of unnamed sources to at least one editor.
    • We do not open conversations with a source with an offer of anonymity.
    • As a general rule, anonymous sources are used as a last resort. Threats to a source’s safety or livelihood are considered.

Donor Relations Policy

• • We strive to be good stewards of our donors’ generosity. Alpha News is funded by nearly 3,000 generous Minnesotans. We are governed by a volunteer board of directors with significant business and legal experience who provide strict oversight of Alpha News’ finances. Any donors who have questions about their donation can reach out to pbagnpghf@nycunarjf.bet and a team member will promptly respond. As a 501(c)(3), all of our tax returns are publicly available.

The Alpha News Privacy Policy may be viewed here.