Editorial Policy

Last updated: June 2026

This Editorial Policy sets out the journalistic standards, ethical principles, and editorial procedures of Harbinger Standard. It applies to all team members, freelance contributors, and guest authors. These guidelines are modelled on the SPJ Code of Ethics, the IFJ guidelines, and the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism standards.

1. Mission and Editorial Independence

Harbinger Standard is an independent English-language digital news portal with the tagline "Insight Africa." Our mission is rigorous, fact-based, and impartial reporting on politics, economics, society, technology, and culture across Africa — from Cairo to Cape Town, from Dakar to Djibouti. Editorial independence is non-negotiable. No article, topic, or framing is determined by advertisers, governments, lobbying organisations, or other external interests. All editorial decisions rest exclusively with the editorial team.

2. Truth, Accuracy, and Due Diligence

Every piece of content published by Harbinger Standard must be accurate, fair, and verifiable. Rules include: the two-source principle for all material claims; verification of statistics from primary sources; clear labelling of unconfirmed information; independent verification of social media content before use as a factual basis; and accuracy prioritised over speed in breaking news.

3. Africa-Specific Reporting Standards

Given Harbinger Standard's focus on Africa, the editorial team adheres to additional standards: (a) avoiding reductive or homogenising narratives about the continent — Africa comprises 54 distinct countries with vastly different contexts; (b) prioritising African voices, sources, and perspectives as primary informants rather than relying solely on Western institutional sources; (c) contextualising statistics and comparisons within appropriate African and global frameworks; (d) exercising heightened sensitivity when reporting on conflict zones, humanitarian crises, and politically repressive environments; (e) taking particular care to protect the safety of local sources and contributors in environments with restricted press freedom.

4. Source Citations and Transparency

Sources are cited as completely as possible. Anonymous sources are limited to exceptional cases where: a public interest overrides identification; the source faces credible risk; editorial management knows the identity; and the decision is documented internally. Anonymous sources are characterised adequately in the article.

5. Separation of News and Opinion

News articles describe facts objectively. Opinion pieces are labelled with the author's name. Analysis pieces are labelled "Analysis." Editorials representing institutional positions are identified accordingly. No personal judgements appear in news reports.

6. Corrections and Right of Reply

Errors are corrected promptly, fully, and transparently with a dated correction note at the end of the article. Articles are not silently altered. Erroneous articles may be retracted with explanation. Requests for right of reply: support@harbingerpressmedia.com. Error reports reviewed within 48 hours.

7. Personality Rights and Human Dignity

Private-life information published only when public interest clearly overrides. Heightened care for crime and disaster victims. No identifying details for minors without guardian consent. No discrimination based on ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, or disability. Presumption of innocence respected in criminal reporting.

8. Conflicts of Interest

Journalists do not report on topics in which they have a personal interest. Conflicts must be reported proactively. Gifts and favours from subjects of reporting are prohibited. Press trips require editorial approval and disclosure.

9. Source Protection

Confidential source identities are never disclosed, including to authorities, to the extent legally permissible. Given the press freedom environment in some African countries, the physical safety of local sources is treated as a paramount concern.

10. Use of AI

AI-generated content is always reviewed by a human editor. AI may not fabricate quotes, sources, or events. This does not apply to content published under the Satire category, which is intentionally fictional and clearly labelled as such. Substantial AI assistance is disclosed. This also applies to Harbinger Standard's AI-assisted Instagram content (video clips, image carousels, and single-image posts published on a shared account with the other Harbinger news portals), disclosed in each post's caption. AI may not generate deceptive images. Human editors bear final responsibility for all published content.

11. Diversity and Representation

Harbinger Standard actively seeks diverse African voices, ensures geographic breadth beyond a few dominant national narratives, and avoids stereotypical framings of African people, governments, and societies. We are committed to reflecting the full complexity and richness of the African continent.

12. Complaints and Feedback

Readers with editorial complaints or feedback: support@harbingerpressmedia.com. We aim to respond within five working days.