Our policies
The Jersey Vindicator is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that seeks to advance accountability, spotlight truth, empower citizens, and spark solutions through original watchdog reporting that serves the information needs of residents of the Garden State. We have developed several policies for the operation of The Jersey Vindicator based on the highest standards and best practices for nonprofit news organizations developed by the top nonprofit media companies and the largest association representing nonprofit news publishers in the U.S., the Institute for Nonprofit News. Our policies:
Editorial Independence
The Jersey Vindicator is a nonpartisan, independent public-interest newsroom dedicated to unique investigative, accountability, explanatory, and solutions journalism. We retain full control over our editorial content. Read our full editorial independence policy.
If you have any questions about our mission, values, or policies, or would like to send us a news tip or suggest a story to us, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Donor Transparency
Our news judgments are made independently and are not based on or influenced by donors or any revenue source. We do not give supporters the right to assign, review, or edit content. Read our full donor transparency policy. Read our post on why donor transparency is helpful and important.
Conflicts of Interest
Our journalists must avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived, and disclose unavoidable conflicts. They must refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel, and special treatment, and avoid political and other outside activities that may compromise our integrity or impartiality, or activities that may damage our credibility. The Jersey Vindicator denies favored treatment to sponsors, donors, or any other special interests, and resists internal and external pressure to influence coverage. All of our sponsored content and sponsorship ads must be prominently labeled. Read our full conflicts of interest policy.
Ethics and Values
Our journalists and editors are expected to follow the highest standards of journalism ethics. They must seek to report the facts and to be fair in their reporting, acting humbly and treating all of the people they talk to with dignity and respect. They must provide as much information as possible about the sources of their information while protecting sources where the disclosure of the source would result in harm. When our journalists make mistakes in their reporting, the inaccuracies should be corrected promptly. Read our ethics and values policy.
Story and Series Collaborations
We collaborate on reporting projects with other media organizations when we think such collaborations will serve the public’s interest and provide our readers with important information. Any such collaboration must align with our mission and uphold our commitment to editorial excellence. Read our full collaboration policy.
Republishing Our Stories
Our mission is to educate, engage, and empower residents of the Garden State with the information and analysis necessary for them to advocate for a more transparent and just government that is accountable to the public. Unless otherwise noted, Jersey Vindicator stories are free to republish if you follow all of our requirements.
