1. Editorial Independence
Civis Wire is an independent digital publication. It does not represent any government, micronation, company, party, or public authority unless explicitly stated in a clearly labeled official statement.
2. Content Labels
Articles should be labeled clearly as News, Analysis, Opinion, Guide, Editorial, Press Release, or Research Note. Press releases and official statements must not be presented as independent reporting.
3. Disclosures
Relevant relationships must be disclosed. This includes volunteer work, advisory roles, employment, partnerships, payments, family connections, organizational membership, or direct involvement with the subject.
4. Source Standards
Articles should prioritize primary documents, official records, archived pages, direct interviews, public data, and independent confirmation. Claims from interested parties should be attributed, not presented as automatically verified.
5. Corrections
Factual errors should be corrected promptly. Significant corrections should include a visible note explaining what changed. Minor grammar or formatting updates do not require a correction note.
6. Redaction Policy
Civis Wire may redact private addresses, phone numbers, personal emails, minors' identifying details, sensitive documents, security credentials, and information that could create unnecessary harm.
7. Minors and Vulnerable People
Extra care should be taken when covering minors, private individuals, victims, or vulnerable people. Identifying details should only be included when clearly necessary and ethically justified.
8. AI-Assisted Work
AI tools may be used for drafting, formatting, research organization, or editing support, but final responsibility for accuracy, sourcing, and publication remains with the human editor.
9. Conflicts of Interest
Writers should avoid covering subjects where they cannot be fair. Where coverage is still useful, the connection must be disclosed and the article should rely heavily on verifiable evidence.
Redaction Procedure
Redaction means removing or obscuring sensitive information while preserving the public-interest value of a story. Civis Wire may redact details before publication or after publication if new risk is identified.
Examples of information that may be redacted include: home addresses, private phone numbers, private emails, passwords, tokens, API keys, payment details, school addresses of minors, precise live locations, and unnecessary personal details.
When redactions significantly affect the article, Civis Wire should add a note such as: “This article was updated to remove personal identifying information.”
Correction Template
Correction, DATE: A previous version of this article misstated [incorrect detail]. The article has been updated to state [correct detail].
Clarification, DATE: This article has been updated to clarify [what was clarified] without changing the main conclusion.