Editorial Standards
The rules Capitol Journal follows for sourcing, attribution, corrections, elections coverage and the use of AI tools.
Last updated
Accuracy and sourcing
We verify facts against primary sources whenever they exist: official records, votes, court documents, statutes, data published by government agencies and election authorities, and on-the-record statements. We link to those sources in the story. When we rely on a secondary source, such as another news organization or a research group, we name it and link to it.
If a fact cannot be confirmed, we say so plainly or leave it out. We do not publish rumors, and we do not publish invented examples, quotes or people.
Bylines and dates
Every story is signed. Stories written by the newsroom as a whole carry the byline “Capitol Journal Staff.” Every story shows when it was published and, if it changed, when it was updated.
Use of AI tools
Some stories are drafted with AI assistance. Those stories say so at the end. AI tools are not a source: every fact in such a story must be traced to a source we link to, and the story is checked against those sources before publication. We do not use AI to generate photographs of real people or events, and we do not present generated images as photographs.
Photographs and images
News photos are credited. Images used to illustrate a topic, rather than to document a specific event, are described as such in their captions.
Opinion
Opinion pieces are labeled “Opinion” and signed by their authors. They do not appear in our news sections.
Elections
We remind readers that official information on registration, deadlines, identification and polling places comes from vote.gov and state election offices, and we link to them. On election night we report results only as election authorities publish them, with the time and source of each update. Results are unofficial until certified. We do not project winners or call races.
Corrections
When we get something wrong, we fix it in the story and add a note at the end that says what was corrected and when. We do not quietly change facts. To report an error, write to info@atlasmedianetwork.org with the link to the story.
Independence
Capitol Journal is owned by Atlas Media Network, LLC. We do not accept payment in exchange for coverage. Any sponsored content would be clearly labeled as such.