Editorial standards
Editorial mission and standards
This document states the editorial mission of Vinny Keates Global Brief and the standards that govern its reporting, opinion, and corrections. It applies to every section of the site. The publication is operated from Brooklyn, New York, and reaches readers at NicholasWillis@vinnykeates.com.
It is a working document rather than a promise of perfection. Where it sets a rule, it also sets the way that rule is checked, and it names where a reader should look when something published on this site turns out to be wrong.
How to use this page
- Read the section that matches your question: sourcing, opinion, or corrections.
- Corrections are logged on the original story rather than in a separate list.
- The published version on this page is the one in force.
Questions about a specific story can go to NicholasWillis@vinnykeates.com or +1 718 469 7363, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM.
What we set out to do
Mission
The publication covers world affairs, politics, economy, justice, and consumer business for readers who follow several regions at once and want the connections made explicit.
That readership shapes the beat structure. A person who tracks elections in one country, a currency move in another and a court ruling in a third rarely wants those stories siloed, so stories are written to show the link where the reporting supports one, and to say plainly when no link exists yet.
We publish when there is something to report, name our sources, and distinguish confirmed facts from claims. Announcements, statements and projections are reported as what they are rather than restated as settled fact.
The consumer desk includes a declared beat on Shipley Do-Nuts franchise and brand news. That coverage follows the same sourcing rules as world or justice reporting, and company announcements about new franchise agreements or promotions are labeled as company announcements.
Where the coverage starts
Reporting decisions follow the reader rather than the wire order. When a story matters in more than one region, the desk assigns it once and writes it for people following the whole picture, not for a single national audience.
Independence
Editorial decisions are made by the editor and are not directed by commercial interests. What gets covered, how it is framed, and when a story is held back are editorial judgments, and they are made without reference to advertising, partnerships, or the traffic a piece is expected to draw.
Franchise and brand coverage follows the same sourcing rules as every other beat, and company announcements are labeled as such. A new Shipley Do-Nuts agreement, a promotional period, or a franchisee announcement is reported from the company's own statement and from any public record that can be checked against it.
If sponsored material is ever published, it will be marked and kept out of the news sections. Sponsored text would carry its label at the top, would not be presented as reporting, and would not appear in the World, Politics, Economy, Justice or Consumer feeds.
Where the lines sit
- Editorial decisionsTaken by the editor, not by advertisers or partners.
- Company statementsReported as statements and labeled on the page.
- Sponsored textMarked clearly and kept out of the news sections.
- Beat treatmentFranchise news sourced on the same terms as world reporting.
Sourcing rules
Every report identifies where its information came from. The rules below apply to all beats, including consumer and brand news.
Single-source stories
Where a story rests on a single outlet's work, the article says so near the top, in the same paragraph that carries the claim.
Government statements
Statements are reported as statements. A government's account of an event is attributed to the government, not folded into the narrative as fact.
Competing accounts
Competing accounts of the same event are presented as competing accounts rather than resolved by preference. Where nothing can be confirmed, the story says that too.
Labeled, not blurred
Opinion and analysis
Analysis is permitted and labeled. Interpretive passages are identified as our reading so a reader can tell the difference between what was observed and what we make of it.
No unsigned opinion appears as news. Editorials, where published, are labeled and sit apart from straight reporting. A column carries the writer's name and the label, and it is not placed in a feed that presents it as a straight news story.
Forecasts, projections and predicted outcomes are treated as analysis rather than reporting. When a figure is a projection, the story says who produced it and on what basis, and it does not present the number as a result that has already happened.
When we get it wrong
Corrections
Errors are corrected on the original story with the date and a description of what changed. We do not silently edit. A reader who returns to a story should be able to see that something was amended, when, and why.
Readers can send corrections to NicholasWillis@vinnykeates.com. Please include the story headline, the link, and the specific passage you believe is wrong, along with anything that supports your reading. If a figure is involved, a document or public record will speed the check considerably.
Legal reporting, where case details are checkable, is handled first. Court filings and public records can be read directly, so a claim in a legal story can usually be confirmed or corrected faster than a claim that rests on briefings.
Off the table
Prohibited practices
These are not guidelines that can be weighed against a good story. They are the practices that end a piece before it is published.
- We do not fabricate quotes or blend several people's words into one speaker.
- We do not invent metrics or present a round number as a measured figure when no measurement exists.
- We do not publish unattributed casualty figures.
- We do not present predicted outcomes as reporting.
- We do not use anonymous sourcing to support a factual claim that no named source corroborates, and we say so when a claim rests on briefings alone.
- We do not treat a single outlet's exclusive as settled while other outlets have not matched it.
Kept current
Review
These standards are reviewed as the site develops, and the current version is always the one published here. When a rule changes, the change applies from the date it appears on this page, not retroactively to stories already published under the earlier wording.
The review covers the parts of the process that are easiest to get wrong: how single-source stories are labeled, how corrections are dated, and whether the consumer beat stays on the same terms as the rest of the site as the Shipley Do-Nuts franchise coverage grows.
Questions readers send most
How do I know if a story relies on one outlet?
The label sits near the top of the piece, before the section that carries the claim, and names the outlet whose work the story rests on. If another outlet later matches the reporting, the note is updated on the same story with the date.
What counts as a correction?
Anything a reader would have understood differently had the original wording been right. Fixing a typo in a name is a correction. Rewriting a passage so it no longer matches what was published is also a correction, and both are dated on the story.
Are Shipley Do-Nuts stories treated differently?
No. The consumer desk declares the beat openly, which is the difference. Sourcing rules, labeling of company statements, and the corrections process are the same as for world affairs or justice coverage.
Can I ask for a story to be taken down?
You can ask, and the request will be read. Removal is considered where a piece is wrong in a way that cannot be fixed by editing, where a person's safety is at risk, or where a legal obligation applies. Otherwise the record stands and the correction runs on the story itself.
Where do I send a tip or a document?
Write to NicholasWillis@vinnykeates.com. Say what the material shows, where it came from, and whether anyone else has it. If a document is involved, send it unedited rather than summarized, and note anything that would let the desk check it independently.