Accuracy and community trust
At ChicoSol, we serve our community by delivering accurate, fair and fact-based journalism that reflects the civic lives of the audiences we cover. Our editorial team is dedicated to verifying all information through credible sources, thorough research, and contextual reporting before publication. We report independently of outside political, commercial, or institutional influences.
Transparency standards
We maintain absolute editorial independence (see below for more detail.) Our donors have zero input or influence over the stories we pitch, report or publish. Editorial management retains final decision-making power over all original content.
Error correction mechanism
Despite our rigorous verification standards, factual errors can occur. When an error is identified, we are committed to correcting it swiftly and transparently.
How to request a correction: If you believe a story contains a factual error, please notify our editorial desk immediately by emailing the editor at ch**********@***il.com or calling 530-570-1024. Provide the headline, publication date, a brief description of the specific inaccuracy and your contact information.
Our process: Once our editors verify that an error has been made, we will update the digital text immediately. A clear correction notice will be appended to the top or bottom of the article detailing the exact information that was changed and the date the update was executed.
Sourcing
To the greatest possible extent ChicoSol ensures that stories represent diverse viewpoints and that readers know where and how we obtained the information we report. To ensure reader trust, we make a diligent effort to report the names of story sources and to provide links to original web-based sources. When sources request anonymity, exceptions can be made if we are able to establish credibility and explain a justifiable reason for the anonymity.
Editorial independence
ChicoSol’s work is supported by our members and fellowships. We maintain a firewall between news coverage and revenue sources and guarantee financial transparency, subscribing to the standards of editorial independence adopted by the Institute for Nonprofit News:
- Our news judgments will not be based on or influenced by any revenue source.
- We will not solicit anonymous donations, but may accept them as long as no more than 15 percent of our total annual revenue comes from anonymous donors.
- We ensure transparency by listing gifts totaling more than $5,000 in a calendar year.
- We may accept donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but will maintain editorial control of the coverage and cede no right of review or influence, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.
- We decline charitable donations from political parties, elected officials or candidates seeking public office, as well as local government.
- We retain full discretion over what stories our reporters cover and how and when.
- AI-generated material is unverified and must be independently checked and sourced before used in published articles. If AI plays a key role in reporting or image generation, that will be clearly stated for our readers.
Avoiding conflicts of interest:
- We avoid donations from sources who, deemed by our advisory board, present a conflict of interest with our work or compromise our independence. ChicoSol has a detailed financial conflict-of-interest policy that is available to the public upon request.
- Contributing writers and editors must disclose any outside relationship between a subject of any article they write for us and themselves or their close relatives, and they are required to avoid submission of articles involving close friends and relatives, or individuals with whom they have outside business relationships.