Ashland.news subscribes to the standards of editorial independence adopted by the Institute for Nonprofit News, which are as follows:

• Ashland.news retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization.
• Ashland.news maintains a firewall between news coverage decisions and sources of all revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions.
• Ashland.news accepts gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities, but our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support.
• Ashland.news may consider donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but our organization maintains editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.
• Ashland.news will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. We will accept anonymous donations for general support only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards have been put into place that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by our organization and in compliance with INN’s Membership Standards.

Corrections Policy

Ashland.news is committed to publishing accurate information in its news articles, correcting errors of fact, and clarifying misleading statements. Send suggested corrections to Executive Editor Bert Etling at betling@ashland.news, or call 541-631-1313.

Ethics Policy

Ashland.news reports news and information about this community accurately, faithfully, and ethically in a timely and useful manner, guided by the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics.

Conflict of Interest Policy

1.0  Purpose

The Board of Directors shall monitor transactions between the corporation and insiders to ensure that any such transaction is fair to the corporation and does not grant excessive benefits to the insider.  The purpose of this policy is to ensure that directors and officers who exercise substantial influence do not use that influence to obtain benefits in excess of fair market value in transactions with the corporation.  This policy seeks to ensure that Ashland.News maintains the high ethical standards that it has set for itself and that it observes state and federal requirements regarding conflicts of interest and excess benefit transactions.

2.0  Definition of Insider

An insider is any person in a position of authority over the corporation, including directors, officers, top management officials, and major donors.   Close family members of insiders may also be considered insiders.  Entities in which a director or officer owns a substantial interest may also be considered insiders.

3.0  Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest arises in a transaction between the corporation and an insider (e.g., hiring an insider to provide goods or services to the corporation; purchases from an insider).  Reasonable expense reimbursements and transactions in the normal course of operations that are available to non-insiders on similar terms and conditions are not conflicts of interest.

The Board recognizes that this policy may not describe all types of transactions between the corporation and an insider, or a business closely connected to an insider, which may create divided loyalties or the perception of a conflict of interest or unfair advantage to the insider.  In such case, the Board may determine whether any such transaction should be treated as a conflict of interest under this policy on a case-by-case basis.

4.0  Procedure

All insiders must report the material facts of a conflict of interest transaction to the Board.

When the corporation engages in a transaction with an insider that is a conflict of interest, the Board shall:

• Exclude any insider from voting on the approval of such a transaction;
• Ensure that the compensation for the insider is reasonable and for fair market value by utilizing appropriate data from similar transactions;
• Document its decision in writing; and
• Report economic benefits to insiders, whether as employee or independent contractor, as required by the Internal Revenue Service (e.g., on a Form W-2, Form 990, Form 1099, or written employment contract).

5.0  Delegation

The Board may delegate its responsibilities under this policy to a committee of the Board or to an Executive Editor or Executive Committee.

As adopted October 27, 2021

Political Candidacy Postings

As part of its mission to promote civic engagement, Ashland.news accepts paid sponsorships from candidates for elective political office without regard to party affiliation.
Political postings need to meet the following criteria:
• The submitted postings must be clearly labeled as candidate ads, and the person or group who pays for them must be clearly identified.
• Viewers may be directed to the candidate’s website, but there can be no appeal for donations.
• Mention of other candidates or use of their likenesses are not permitted.

Right of refusal

In addition, Ashland.news reserves the right to refuse campaign submissions that, in its judgment, fail to meet Ashland.news standards of acceptable civic discourse.