These standards describe the practices our reporters and editors follow when sourcing, writing, and publishing news. They are intended to make our judgement calls visible and our work easier to challenge.
Fact-checking
Before publication, every article is checked against the source documents the reporter cited. Names, titles, dates, numbers, locations, and direct quotes are verified independently. When a fact cannot be independently confirmed, we attribute it to the source ("according to the district collector's office") rather than asserting it as established truth.
Attribution
Every claim that is not common knowledge carries an attribution - a person, document, agency, or publication. We avoid the passive constructions ("it has been reported", "sources say") that hide the origin of information. When using wire service or syndicated content, the source is named in the byline or article footer.
On-the-record, off-the-record
By default, conversations with sources are on the record. Off-the-record arrangements must be agreed before the source shares information, never after. "On background" means the information may be used but not attributed; "deep background" means the reporter may understand the information but not publish it. We do not retroactively grant anonymity to embarrass our reporters.
Embargoes
We respect embargoes negotiated in good faith with sources - typically press releases that ask us not to publish until a stated time. We do not honour embargoes used to manipulate the news cycle (e.g. embargoes set for late Friday night to bury bad news). Embargo decisions sit with the editor on duty.
Bilingual translation
Rayalaseema News publishes primarily in Telugu, with English summaries on news that has regional or national significance. Our AI-assisted translation pipeline (extract → compose → fact-check) preserves named entities, numbers, and direct quotes exactly; cultural references and idioms are rendered into natural Telugu rather than literally translated. A human editor reviews every translated article before publication.
Headlines and social media
Headlines must reflect the substance of the article. We do not use clickbait constructions ("you won't believe what happened next") or questions that the article doesn't answer. Social media posts linking to our articles must accurately summarise the article they link to.
Image and video standards
Photographs are not digitally altered beyond standard tonal corrections (exposure, white balance, cropping). We never composite multiple images and present the result as documentary. Stock photography used to illustrate a story is captioned "Representative image". Video is not selectively edited in ways that change the meaning of what is shown or said.
Reader interaction
Comments on our articles are moderated for harassment, hate speech, doxxing, and spam - not for disagreement with our reporting. We engage with serious factual challenges in our corrections policy and treat all other feedback per our feedback policy.
