Fish 4 News exists to give readers factual reporting, context and analysis so they can make up their own minds.
News
News reporting should:
- distinguish confirmed facts from allegations, claims and opinion
- identify significant uncertainty or dispute
- use primary or authoritative sources where reasonably available
- provide relevant context rather than presenting isolated claims
- avoid deliberately misleading headlines or imagery
- correct material errors when they are identified
News reporting should not instruct readers what conclusion they are expected to reach.
Opinion
Opinion is clearly labelled. Opinion pieces may argue a position and may use a stronger or more irreverent voice than news reporting, but factual claims within them should still be supportable.
Sources
Where practical, Fish 4 News links to or identifies the sources used in reporting. Anonymous or confidential sources require particular care and should not be used simply because attribution would be inconvenient.
Allegations and disputed claims
An allegation is not a fact merely because it has been widely repeated. Where a serious claim is disputed, that dispute should be represented fairly and clearly.
Headlines and social posts
Headlines should accurately reflect the substance of the story. Social-media wording should not make a claim stronger than the article supports.
Images and generated material
Photographs and video should be described accurately. Illustrative, composite or AI-generated imagery must not be used in a way that would reasonably cause readers to believe it is genuine documentary evidence of an event.
Updates
Developing stories may change as new information becomes available. Significant updates should be incorporated into the article and, where appropriate, made clear to readers.