Editorial Standards

These are the operating standards every Daily Beirut journalist and contributor is expected to follow. They are enforced by the Editor-in-Chief and senior editors.

Verification

A story does not go live until its central facts have been confirmed. For breaking news, we require either two independent sources, or one source plus our own direct observation or document, or a statement from a relevant official body that we can attribute. We do not republish reports from other outlets as fact unless we have independently confirmed them. When we cite another outlet, we name it.

Sourcing

Named sources are preferred. We use anonymous sources only when the information is materially in the public interest, the source has reason to fear consequences for speaking on the record, and the editor has approved the use of anonymity. We do not grant anonymity for opinion or speculation.

Imagery and Multimedia

Photographs and video are credited to the photographer or agency. We do not crop, recolor, or alter images in ways that change their meaning. When we use a photograph that illustrates rather than documents an event, we caption it clearly as illustrative.

Plagiarism

Daily Beirut has a zero-tolerance policy for plagiarism. Quoted passages are attributed. Paraphrased reporting from other outlets is credited in line with our attribution policy. Verified plagiarism results in retraction of the affected article and termination of the contributor.

Conflicts of Interest

Reporters disclose any financial, personal, or political relationship that could affect their coverage of a subject. Where a conflict cannot be managed, the story is reassigned.

Bias and Identification

We name people consistently across coverage regardless of nationality, religion, gender, or political affiliation. We avoid stereotyping descriptors when they are not relevant to the story.

Sensitive Coverage

We protect the identity of victims of sexual violence, minors involved in criminal proceedings, and witnesses whose safety could be compromised by identification. We use graphic imagery only when it is essential to a story and we warn readers in advance.

Contact

Standards inquiries: [email protected]