Policies and Standards

NEWSWEEK MISSION STATEMENT

Newsweek speaks to—and listens to—readers across the political and cultural spectrum.

We are committed to journalism that's factual and fair.

We believe good-faith debate is in the public interest, and we welcome diverse views and voices to the search for common ground.

Our editorial policies and standards are set out below.

WHO WE ARE

Newsweek is a premier news magazine and website that has been bringing high-quality journalism to readers around the globe for over 90 years. (About Us)

Global Editor in Chief Nancy Cooper heads the editorial leadership team that directs Newsweek's reporting and publishing of the latest news, in-depth analysis and ideas about international issues, technology, business, culture and politics.

You can get in touch with Newsweek at [email protected].

OWNERSHIP

Newsweek is a privately held company that is co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, the President and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at Newsweek. You can find further details of ownership here.

ETHICS POLICY

Newsweek is committed to accurate, independent, ethical and responsible journalism. We report fairly; we attribute clearly; we correct mistakes transparently. Our editorial policies and processes are designed to support those values and we are open about them.

All reporters for Newsweek must identify themselves clearly. They must never use deception or pretense to obtain information.

No Newsweek reporter can accept remuneration of any kind in exchange for coverage. Newsweek journalists must not cover any company, industry or issue in which they have a financial interest.

Newsweek journalists must guard their independence. They are allowed to vote, but they must not campaign for a political candidate or political cause - whether that is in person, on social media, by joining rallies or through any other action. Nor should they donate to or raise funds for any political candidates or committees. Staff members who work in the realm of opinion are exempt from these political restrictions but are expected to be transparent about financial conflicts of interest.

Any reporters in situations that could create conflicts of interest or the perception of such should raise this with senior editorial staff.

Newsweek's newsroom operates in service of the audience, with complete editorial independence from the management of the company.

FACT-CHECKING

Newsweek journalists have responsibility for checking the facts of their articles.

They should check dates, spelling of names, titles, timelines, numbers and other statistics. They should also hard-check any superlative—i.e., was this really the first, the worst, the only, the highest?

Examples of sources used for fact-checking include the subjects of articles and what they have said themselves, witnesses to events, competent authorities, officials and official statements, verified reports on other media and social media and background reference materials.

Newsweek journalists should ask themselves not only what the source is for any information, but also how likely that source is to be accurate, how that source was able to establish that information and what interest the source has in disclosing such information at that time.

Newsweek opinion writers should also check the facts used in their articles.

All Newsweek stories are reviewed by editors before publication and these editors will also check facts as merited.

BYLINE POLICY

Only on rare occasions, such as when it could put the reporter in danger, would a byline not be used. Such a decision would need approval by senior editorial management.

SOURCING

Newsweek sourcing must always be clear and should be as comprehensive as possible.

Newsweek reporters can use anonymous sources in rare cases where editors agree that the public good is served by the reporting and the source could be danger or suffer other serious consequences if their identity were disclosed. Editors should be involved in discussions of these cases.

Newsweek will always be as specific as possible in describing sources used in an article, the terms on which they were speaking and the reason why anonymity is necessary.

Only credible third-party sources should be used and they should be used only when it is reasonable to believe they were able to obtain the information in question. This includes other media. They should also be identified.

If a responsible publication relies on an anonymous source, it may be acceptable for a Newsweek reporter to cite it after discussion with an editor. The publication must always be named.

Newsweek does not pay sources for information.

FAIRNESS

Comment should be sought from any party against whom allegations are recounted.

Even when a party does not comment, Newsweek strives to include that party's perspective.

Context is included to help the reader to understand the article, and is not intended to appear biased or unfair..

Newsweek journalists should be clear with the audience about what they know, what they don't know and what information is open to debate.

Data and evidence should be weighed impartially, and Newsweek reporters must seek the best information available at the time, including analyses or interpretations that might conflict with their personal views.

Newsweek reporters should avoid editorializing in news stories.

Sources or subjects of articles will be identified by race or ethnicity only when the information is critical to the article.

CORRECTIONS

Any errors of fact must be corrected promptly and transparently. All corrected stories must be identified as such.

Anyone contacted about a possible error in their story must examine the question fairly, with an open mind.

If Newsweek needs to retract a story so flawed it cannot be corrected, it does so transparently. We do not unpublish or "disappear" problem copy.

We do not remove articles that were correct at the time of publication, but we may update them and would note any update.

A list of errors and corrections is on our website here.

QUESTIONS OF TASTE

In general, we avoid profanity, especially in headlines, and use it only in quotations where it is relevant and necessary.

We avoid publishing nude photos (or links to them) or grisly, graphic images.

We never spell out the n-word or other profoundly offensive racial epithets.

PLAGIARISM AND FABRICATION

Newsweek has a zero-tolerance policy for plagiarism and fabrication, and violation of this policy will be considered a gross misconduct offense that may result in immediate termination of employment on the first offense.

Fabrication of names, events, or any other information is unacceptable. It is at the manager's discretion to determine how much content is required to constitute plagiarism.

Editorial staff are strictly prohibited from using someone else's work as their own.

It is not acceptable to make minor modifications to another publication's wording or to duplicate its story structure. Writers must produce stories with original phrasing and structure and with additional information and context.

On the rare occasion when we can't confirm a critical fact that another publication has reported, we must credit the fact to that publication. If ever reporters are unsure, they must consult with their manager or the editor-in-chief.

There are instances when it is acceptable to use passages as they appeared in previous Newsweek stories when providing background information. When wording has been re-used from a previous story, a link to that story should be included.

CASUALTY EVENTS

Newsweek is careful in its coverage of mass casualty events, from which information can often be confusing.

Newsweek does not rely on information from social media for breaking news or for details of suspected killers or their motives.

A Newsweek reporter speaking to anyone involved in a traumatic event must show particular sensitivity.

Newsweek adheres to practices that minimize the possibility of contagion when writing about a suicide. We do not describe the method, give specifics or say how painful or otherwise it was. We do not speculate about a cause.

Newsweek avoids saying a person "committed" suicide—a dated phrase from a time when suicide was a crime. Instead, people "die by suicide."

We would not publish the contents of a suicide note unless there is a clear journalistic purpose to do so. A senior editor should be consulted about this.

Because people who are thinking about suicide can often be influenced by stories about suicide, Newsweek always includes this note at the bottom of any story about suicide: "If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "988" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org."

Newsweek is careful to be sensitive when covering any deaths, including those of public figures. Coverage must be proportionate and Newsweek reporters must think carefully about any coverage of children and other relatives, including partners or former partners.

SCIENCE/HEALTH STUDIES

In general, Newsweek does not base a story on a single study. There are cases where doing so is a reader service as long as we are careful to present the study in context and with appropriate caveats.

Reporters must be clear about whether what they are writing about is a study, an opinion piece or a review of the literature. It's best to talk directly to the researcher, to ask if the researcher has any financial conflicts of interest, to know who sponsored the study and to confirm that other experts (peer review) recognize the work as legitimate.

Studies should be put into the larger context of previous understanding or studies as well as questions over how many people could be affected. Increases in risk should be put in the perspective of absolute risk.

We should be as explicit as possible about the methodology and its implications, such as being clear about the test subjects, the size of the sample, how researchers measured the results and any control group.

CRIMINAL CASES AND ALLEGATIONS

When writing about criminal charges or allegations, we should be as specific and complete as possible. We should detail the precise charge, if any. We should say whether the accused person pleaded not guilty or whether they or a lawyer otherwise denied any allegations.

If there was a conviction, it should be clear on what count or counts.

Unless someone has been convicted, headlines and other text should state that the crime is alleged.

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY

Newsweek recognizes that social media provides unique opportunities for staff to participate in interactive discussions and share information on particular topics.

Newsweek journalists must be aware that personal social media accounts may portray them as someone with a bias, or with a personal or partisan agenda and that this could raise questions about their—and Newsweek's—impartiality.

Any engagements must be respectful and civil at all times, without profanity or ad hominem attacks.

Newsweek journalists should avoid posting or sending anything through social media that includes or could be perceived as ethnic slurs, obscene, sexist or discriminatory comments, threats of violence, or other similar types of remarks.

Nobody at Newsweek should post anything on personal social media channels that they wouldn't say to a large, diverse, unfamiliar crowd of individuals.

It is not Newsweek's intention to constrain public facing staff members from acknowledging their own experiences.

ACTIONABLE FEEDBACK

Newsweek welcomes feedback from readers and the global communities that it covers to shape and enhance its reporting.

We encourage comments on our stories and want to generate open and thoughtful conversations in which readers can share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space.

Anyone can get in touch with us via [email protected]. All submissions will be read and an appropriate response made or other action taken.

The Standards Team and senior editors will look at all feedback, including complaints about possible breaches of our policy and standards.

All reports of possible errors are investigated with an open mind, in line with our corrections policy. Any errors confirmed in published stories are corrected.

Newsweek editors, journalists and opinion writers frequently engage at public events and through social media.

DIVERSITY

Inclusiveness is at the heart of Newsweek's journalism from around the world. We always seek diverse views. We recognize that backgrounds, identities and experiences can all shape someone's perspectives, but will avoid stereotypes or making assumptions.

We seek diversity in our reporting team and within our management. We are striving to better reflect the global communities that we cover and to be able to demonstrate this improvement.

Newsweek's latest Diversity Report can be found here.

PRIVACY POLICY

Newsweek is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy and we will do our best to ensure that your data is protected.

Our privacy policy describes how we collect, store and use non-sensitive personal data as defined under the General Data Protection Regulation. This privacy policy (together with our terms of use and any other documents referred to in it) describes how we process any personal data which you provide us with, or which we collect from you.

Please read our policy carefully to understand our views and practices regarding your personal data and how we will treat it. By visiting any Newsweek website and viewing its content, you are accepting and consenting to the practices described in this policy.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

As Newsweek evaluates AI-based tools that might help reporters, video editors, copy editors, assignment editors and others do their jobs more effectively, we will roll them out to the newsroom. Sometimes these tools will be deployed to small teams as experiments. These experiments will always be bound by the rules in this policy.

Newsweek believes that AI tools can help journalists work faster, smarter and more creatively. Sometimes, a tool will take away the more burdensome tasks of day-to-day journalism. In other cases, AI may put a project that was too time-consuming or expensive to pursue within our newsroom's grasp. We firmly believe that soon all journalists will be working with AI in some form and we want our newsroom to embrace these technologies as quickly as is possible in an ethical way.

AI is not accountable to Newsweek readers: we are. The burden of ensuring that all stories or other content meets Newsweek standards rests with our writers, editors and producers, always.

To that end, we will always comply with the following rules when working with AI:

IMAGES

Newsweek will avoid publishing AI generated images - either video or still pictures - that appear lifelike.

WRITTEN CONTENT - CORE FUNCTIONS

If a piece involves the use of AI tools in writing, research, editing or other core journalism functions, journalists will be involved at each step of assigning, reporting and publishing the written content.

WRITTEN CONTENT - SUPPORTING FUNCTIONS

The rules requiring the involvement of three journalists do not apply when AI tools are simply used to support a journalist's work such as for note taking, transcription and video script writing, writing social copy, A/B testing headlines, adding metadata or selecting images. However, the journalist using such tools will be responsible for ensuring they do not give rise to errors.

DISCLOSURE

Any journalist using any AI tool on a core journalism function must disclose that to their editor and the publishing desk. Any tool not previously used by Newsweek must be approved by the Standards Editor.