Editorial Standards and AI Policy

1. Accuracy and Fact-checking
All investigative claims, political leaks, and economic data must be rigorously fact-checked against primary sources before publication.
Anonymous whistleblower claims must be corroborated by independent documentation or at least one secondary, verified source.
If a significant factual error is made, a correction or clarification must be published prominently within the article within 24 hours of the error being identified.

2. Balance and the Right of Reply
Any person, politician, or corporation facing serious criticism or allegations of wrongdoing must be given a fair and reasonable opportunity to respond before publication.
Journalists must make a minimum of three documented attempts to contact the subject via multiple channels (e.g., email, phone, and physical address if known). For standard news, a reasonable response window should be provided, typically up to 24 hours depending on the publication cycle. For major investigative reports involving complex financial or criminal allegations, the subject must be given a reasonable window of 3 to 5 working days based on the local calendar of the subject’s country, unless urgent public safety or immediate public interest dictates otherwise.
The subject’s response, or a fair and accurate summary of it, must be included with appropriate prominence within the published investigative report.

3. Protection of Sources and Whistleblowers
We commit to protecting the confidentiality of our sources to the fullest extent permitted by law, and will resist the unauthorised disclosure of a contributor’s identity across all jurisdictions in which we operate.
Staff must use encrypted communication channels (e.g., Signal or secure digital dropboxes) when handling sensitive political or economic leak documentation.
Editors must critically assess the motivations of anonymous sources to ensure The Pacific Post is not being used as a tool for political or corporate sabotage.

4. Independence and Conflicts of Interest
Editorial content must remain entirely independent of commercial advertisers, political donors, or government funding bodies.
Journalists must immediately disclose any personal, financial, or cultural connections to a Pacific political figure or economic entity involved in a story.
Staff are strictly prohibited from accepting gifts, free travel, or hospitality that could compromise, or appear to compromise, their journalistic integrity.

5. Privacy and Public Interest
Everyone is entitled to privacy, including public figures and politicians in their private lives.
Intrusion into a person’s privacy is only justifiable if it serves a legitimate public interest, such as exposing corruption, a breach of public trust, criminal activity or significant economic mismanagement affecting the Pacific region.

6. Accountability and Complaints Process
TBC: The Pacific Post Limited is bound by the principles of the New Zealand Media Council [1].
Footer Notice: The website footer will permanently display a link to the NZMC complaints portal [1], alongside an email address (editor@thepacificpost.org or similar) for direct public complaints.

1. Core Principle
All investigative research, source interviews, final reporting, and editorial decisions must be conducted and verified entirely by human journalists. AI tools are strictly assistants, never authors.
AI tools used by The Pacific Post will be regularly assessed to minimise bias and ensure they align with our commitment to delivering impartial, fact-based reporting.
Any issues detected in AI bias will be addressed immediately to uphold our standard of objective reporting.

2. Zero tolerance for Generative Text
The use of generative AI (such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini or similar large language models) to write news stories, features, or investigative reports under The Pacific Post masthead is strictly prohibited.
Headlines, social media copy, and news summaries must be written entirely by editorial staff to prevent automated bias or misrepresentation.

3. Permitted Research and Analytical Use
AI tools may be used by investigative staff to clean, sort, and parse large datasets (e.g., leaked financial documents or public spreadsheets), provided all processed data is manually re-verified by a human journalist.
Automated translation tools may be used as a baseline to interpret local Pacific language documents, but critical quotes and context must be verified by a fluent human speaker prior to publication.

4. Visual Integrity and Audiovisual Content
Photos, illustrations, and digital graphics representing news events must be authentic. Generative AI imagery is banned for editorial content. Audio or video recordings generated or altered by AI must never be published unless the content itself is part of an investigative exposé explicitly detailing the creation, context, and threat of that specific manipulation or deepfake.

5. Accountability and Disclosure
If any technical aspect of an investigative report relies significantly on machine learning software (e.g., specialised data analysis tools), the methodology must be clearly disclosed to the reader at the end of the article.