EDITORIAL GUIDELINES
FOR ATENCION SAN MIGUEL
A publication by
LA BIBLIOTECA PÚBLICA DE SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE, GTO.
Atencion San Miguel (the Publication) is a publication of La Biblioteca Publica de San Miguel De Allende, A.C., and is represented by its Board of Directors (the Publisher.) These are the editorial guidelines established by the Publisher for the Editor, staff and free-lance contributors of Atencion San Miguel. These guidelines apply to all publications made by Atencion San Miguel, no matter what the format of the publication (ie. digital, print, video, internet, etc.)
These Editorial Guidelines are based on the principle of freedom of expression and our commitment to serve the public interest.
The primary mission of Atencion San Miguel is to publish and broadcast, in a bilingual format, local and national news of interest to the community of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
Atencion San Miguel, as part of the Biblioteca Publica de San Miguel de Allende, has no political or religious affiliation and is committed to total impartiality in all the matters it publishes or broadcasts.
All income generated by Atencion San Miguel is exclusively used to support the educational and cultural activities of the Biblioteca Publica de San Miguel de Allende, as stated in the bylaws of the institution.
Standards: The staff of Atencion San Miguel will check the accuracy of facts, the exactness of quotations, and the integrity of photographs and will not use anonymous sourcing, except where it is necessary to protect the identity of a source out of a concern for safety. We will not tolerate Staff members who plagiarize or who knowingly or recklessly provide false information for publication which betrays our fundamental pact with our audiences.
Freedom of expression: The Publisher fully supports the exchange of information by Atencion San Miguel without interference from public or private organizations so as to be totally independent within the framework of these guidelines. It is understood that with freedom of expression come duties, responsibilities, legal restrictions and limits. The Publication must avoid causing unjustifiable offence and also respect people’s privacy – only putting private information into the public domain where the public interest outweighs an individual’s legitimate expectation of privacy.
Public Interest: Atencion San Miguel shall operate in the public interest and provide information that assists people in our community to better comprehend or make decisions on matters of public importance. The public interest is served by reporting stories of significance to our audiences, including exposing crime or significantly anti-social behavior and by exposing corruption, injustice and significant incompetence or negligence in matters related to community life. Atencion San Miguel shall seek to establish the truth and use the highest reporting standards to provide coverage that is fair and accurate.
Accountability (Corrections/Retractions): The Publication shall be transparent and accountable and open in acknowledging mistakes when they are made and learn from those mistakes. The Editor shall establish and publish a protocol by which our audience(s) may petition the Editor to make a correction to a fact or to retract a statement made in the Publication in the event of an error. The Publication will acknowledge serious factual errors and correct mistakes quickly, clearly and appropriately.
Editorial Advisory Council: In accordance with the Bylaws of the Biblioteca, the Publisher may establish an Editorial Advisory Council, chaired by a member of the Board of Directors. The volunteers that participate on this council will have experience in one or more of the following areas: print or internet journalism, publishing, laws impacting journalists and publishers, news production, layout, media marketing and advertising sales. The Editor shall seek professional advisory guidance from the Council on any facet of the business of Atencion San Miguel. The Council may also make recommendations to the Editor. The Editor will coordinate with the Publisher, should the Editor seek to make any significant change(s) to this business.
Editorial Justification: The concept of editorial justification shall be central to the application of the values and standards of Atencion San Miguel. Editorial justification is a judgement about the particular circumstances of each case whether the editorial purposes of our content or actions outweigh any potential negative impact on our audiences and people mentioned in our publication (or, where relevant, those closest to them). It includes, but is not limited to: balancing the privacy of individuals against the public interest in revealing information about them; the use of potentially offensive output in appropriate contexts against the Publication’s rights of freedom of expression and the audience’s right to receive information.
Any proposal to step outside the Editorial Guidelines must be editorially justified and authorized in advance with the Executive Director of the Biblioteca Publica de San Miguel de Allende and, ultimately, with the Publisher.
Opinions: In the accepted journalistic tradition, Atencion San Miguel will enable a wide range of individuals, groups or organizations to express personal views or opinions as long as they conform to the standards of decency and safety of the community. This can range from partial views of a political campaigner to the opinion of a specialist or professional including an academic or scientist, to views expressed through contributions from our audiences. All of these can add to the public understanding and debate, especially when they allow the audience to hear fresh and original perspectives on familiar issues. Such personal view content must be clearly identified by the Publication our audiences.
Reservation of Rights: The Editor and the Publisher reserve the right to solicit articles of various categories, accept or reject any submission made by third parties, and select the timing of the publications of such submissions.