THE CITY serves the people of New York through independent journalism that holds the powerful to account, deepens democratic participation and helps make sense of the greatest city in the world.
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Community Guidelines
THE CITY launched in April 2019 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan, digital news platform dedicated to hard-hitting reporting that serves all New Yorkers. To that end THE CITY aims to be a constructive platform for meaningful discourse about issues that affect all New Yorkers. To help ensure that we ask that you follow these guidelines when engaging with us and each other across our social channels, at our events, and on other platforms where you meet THE CITY. Thanks in advance for helping us create spaces where all New Yorkers can listen to and participate in civic discourse.
Do
- Participate in discussions by furthering the conversation with credible information, informed questions, concerns, expertise and relevant comments.
- Be considerate and respectful when engaging with other readers on our platforms.
Do not
- Post or share false or misleading information.
- Doxx or publicly post identifying information about other people without their permission.
- Engage in threats, harassment, hate speech, racist or bigoted comments against individuals or groups, or ad hominem attacks.
Violations of our community guidelines will lead to removal of comments or people from our social channels and other platforms.
To report violations of these guidelines, write us at community@thecity.nyc.
Code of Ethics
THE CITY is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to hard-hitting reporting that gets results for the people of New York.
Our work is guided by a Code of Ethics, which draws inspiration (and in some cases, specific language) from The Texas Tribune, The Marshall Project, ProPublica and Society of Professional Journalists, among others.
Here’s the short version: We’re a nonpartisan outlet dedicated to truth, accuracy and fairness. We don’t play favorites for financial or any other reasons ��� we have no agenda, hidden or otherwise. We know our credibility – and our impact – depends on practicing what we preach.
Here’s the longer version, which reflects both our commitment to transparency and a recognition that journalism, upended in recent years by economic and technological forces, is quickly changing. In that spirit, we plan to revisit – and potentially revise – this page from time to time.
The unpredictable nature of journalism means that we may be required to make exceptions to these rules as circumstances require. If that’s ever the case, we’ll be as upfront as possible on why.
Our Funding
We’re a nonprofit. We’re relying on financial support from individuals, foundations, events and corporate sponsorships. The future could bring new funding streams we’ve yet to identify.
Whatever the funding source, our strict editorial independence mandate applies. Donors shouldn’t expect preferential coverage – we won’t give it. We may very well publish stories that make some donors unhappy. Whenever stories mention any of our funders or members of our board of directors or advisory boards, we’ll disclose relevant relationships. (For more about our growing list of funders, see our Funders page.)
Corrections
When we make a mistake — we’re only human — we will update the story to the extent it is necessary to do so. If you find what you believe to be an error, email corrections@thecity.nyc.
Attribution
Fabrication – the making up of information, quotes, people or any elements of a story – and plagiarism – passing off someone else’s work as one’s own – are journalism’s biggest sins. Cases of either will be dealt with severely.
Our team may improve the technical quality of photos and video or audio recordings, but will not misleadingly alter the substance. All photo illustrations, graphics or animations will be clearly labeled as such.
Sourcing
We will try our best to identify all sources, granting individuals anonymity only when it is necessary to do so. We will seek to identify in our reporting any bias we know our sources have. Anonymous sources will be told that the reporter will share their identity with a senior editor, who will also endeavor to keep that information confidential.
Our journalists will never misrepresent themselves or mislead a source to get an interview or a story. We do not pay for interviews.
Thorough efforts will be made to contact the primary subjects and sources of criticism in our stories.
Impartiality, Independence and Conflicts of Interest
We can’t say this enough: Editorial decisions are made by journalists alone.
Stories that reference or quote a donor or corporate sponsor to THE CITY who has contributed $2,500 or more in the previous two years will disclose their status as a donor or sponsor.
Journalists will not work on stories or projects in which they have a unique vested interest, financial or personal. They should avoid active, direct investment in companies or industries they regularly cover.
Journalists seeking secondary employment or freelance work must be cleared by an editor to ensure the work does not conflict with their responsibilities at THE CITY.
Editorial employees may moderate panels or speak at events underwritten by THE CITY’s donors or sponsors so long as their role is purely journalistic.
THE CITY employees, contractors and interns will not accept any gift from any company, individual or institution that may compromise integrity or impartiality, or may damage credibility. We always pay our own way when traveling for editorial or business purposes.
Public and Civic Life
THE CITY champions participation in democracy and civic life, and that ethos extends to our employees, whom we encourage to vote and to take part in efforts to improve their communities. After all, our employees live in the city we cover and have a stake in its future.
We are also an independent newsroom committed to covering New York for all New Yorkers with rigor, transparency and impartiality.
These two values can come into conflict. When they do, we expect all employees to alert their supervisors and develop and adhere to guidelines that preserve THE CITY’s editorial integrity.
Certain actions, such as donating to or endorsing candidates THE CITY covers, are off limits, as they would question our fairness. Editorial employees should also refrain from engaging politically or materially in any subject they directly cover.
But other expressions of values and engagement in civic life are not only permissible but encouraged, so long as they do not create conflicts of interest.
Gray zones are inevitable. First and foremost, we expect our employees to proactively identify potential conflicts and engage in open conversations about them.
Privacy
The content on our site is delivered by Newspack, which is owned by Automattic, the people who make Wordpress. Please read our Privacy Policy and Other Terms for more about how we use your data.
We want to hear from you.
Have a question about our policies? See something that needs a correction? Contact Us