Editorial standards

Last updated 7 October 2026.

Stories of Record is run by Saadat Rafiq and team. These are the rules every story follows. How we publish lists the exact checks a fact must pass.

What we cover

We do not try to cover everything. We choose stories that matter to the public, keep developing, and have reliable sources, so that a single page can stay useful for weeks or months.

Sources

Every fact on a story page links to the source it comes from. In order of preference we rely on:

1. Official sources: governments, regulators, courts and public bodies.
2. Official statements and announcements from the companies and organisations involved.
3. Original documents, court filings and scientific papers.
4. Direct, on-the-record statements.
5. Established news organisations.

News aggregators and search feeds can alert us that something happened, but we never cite them as evidence. We write our own summaries and do not republish other publications' articles.

Confirmed and not confirmed

Each story keeps two separate lists.

• Confirmed means the fact comes from an official source, or from at least two news organisations with different owners. The same wire report published by several outlets counts once.
• Not confirmed covers claims, reports and figures that have not been independently checked. They are labelled as such and say who made the claim.

A claim moves from "not confirmed" to "confirmed" only when a qualifying source supports it, and the change is recorded in the story's history.

How stories are checked

Every story is checked against the sources it cites. Each statement must be supported by a linked source, and every image is checked against its caption and licence. If anything fails, the update is held back and not published.

The team uses AI-assisted research and writing tools. They are never treated as a source: every fact traces back to a published source we link to.

Images

• Every image carries a credit and its licence.
• Stock and generated images are labelled Illustration, not a photo of the event. We never present them as a picture of what happened.
• We never create or alter a photograph to show a real event.
• Photos of real events come from official sources, licensed agencies or openly licensed collections, and are labelled with where they came from.

Updates and version history

We update a story only when something has actually changed. Every update creates a new version; earlier versions are never overwritten and stay readable from the story's history page, so you can see what the page said before and what changed.

Neutrality and style

We write in plain, neutral language, lead with the most important information, and avoid sensational wording, speculation presented as fact, and clickbait headlines.

Independence

Advertisers and sponsors have no influence over what we cover or what we say. Advertising is never placed inside story text or dressed up as editorial content.

Mistakes

When we get something wrong we correct it openly. See our corrections policy.