What we publish, and how we know it.

Every factual claim must be traceable to a named source, a primary document, direct observation, or — where unavoidable — a properly justified anonymous source. Wire copy is treated as a lead, not a fact.

Anonymity is granted only when (a) the information is materially in the public interest, (b) it cannot be obtained on the record, and (c) the source faces a credible professional, legal, or personal risk. The editor in charge of the story must know the source's identity and approve the grant in writing.

Two-source rule for any non-trivial claim attributed to power — government, large corporates, security services, political parties. Documents are authenticated before publication; photographs and video are reverse-image-searched and provenance-checked.

Any individual or institution named adversely is given a meaningful opportunity to respond before publication — minimum 24 hours for non-breaking stories, with the reply summarized fairly and at appropriate length in the published piece.

Republic newsrooms may use AI for transcription, translation drafting, research summarization, and code. AI is never used to generate published prose, photorealistic imagery, or quotes attributed to real people. AI-assisted research is verified by a human reporter before publication.

Original reporting by other outlets is credited by name at first reference. Republished or syndicated material is labeled. Stock language is never lifted; quotes are never composited.

Every story carries a byline. Every byline carries an email. Reader complaints are reviewed by the standards editor and, where merited, escalated to the corrections process described in our Corrections policy.