Editorial Standards & Corrections
Local stories. Clear sources. Human accountability.
HastingsNow exists to help people understand life in Hastings, Minnesota, and preserve stories worth remembering. That work depends on accuracy, fair treatment and a willingness to correct mistakes.
This page explains the standards we work to uphold, the differences between the material we publish, and how to raise a concern. It applies to our website and the editorial and promotional material we publish through our other channels. The same source, disclosure, privacy and correction principles apply to associated submission and publishing tools where offered.
Something inaccurate, outdated, misleading or unclear? Email info@HastingsNow.com. Include the page or post and a short explanation. You do not need to be a customer, advertiser or listed organization to contact us.
Who is responsible
HastingsNow.com is operated by Local Pigeon, LLC. Peter and Ashley lead the publication and are responsible for its editorial decisions.
We are a small, locally operated team. We use modern production tools and work with outside sources, but those tools and sources do not take responsibility away from us.
These standards apply to our own statements, business descriptions and promotional claims, too. We welcome constructive criticism of both our published work and our practices.
Understand what you are reading
Not everything on HastingsNow is produced or checked in the same way.
Reporting and original features draw on interviews, on-location photography and video, documents, research or other identified evidence. We distinguish what we observed from what someone told us.
LOCAL 10 and researched explainers select and summarize useful information with human editorial review. They may draw on other organizations’ announcements or reporting; inclusion does not mean we independently witnessed every event or investigated every claim. LOCAL 10 is a selection, not a complete account of everything happening locally.
Community submissions, interviews and source-provided updates include information supplied by residents, businesses and organizations. We identify the source and distinguish the speaker’s account from our own findings. Editing a submission does not turn every claim into an independently established fact.
Automated community feeds gather public posts as source feeds refresh. Individual feed posts are not reviewed by HastingsNow before appearing. Their inclusion is not an endorsement or a blanket verification. Concerns about material appearing in our feeds can still be reported to us.
Paid promotional stories and advertising are commissioned or supported commercial content. We identify their commercial nature and the relevant paying organization.
Opinion, commentary and creative interpretation are distinguished from factual reporting. Opinions remain subject to corrections of underlying factual errors.
These categories can overlap: an interview can be part of a paid feature, and a reviewed explainer can contain an AI-assisted illustration. One label does not cancel the need for another relevant disclosure.
Sources, review and verification
Knowing who said something is not the same as knowing that it is true.
When we use a Verified Local Source label, it refers to a check of identity, authority or local connection—not approval of everything that source says. A Self-Reported label identifies information supplied by the named source. A Reviewed by HastingsNow label indicates human review; it is not a claim of exhaustive investigation.
For specific factual checks, we explain what was checked when that context matters. We do not use broad verification language to imply more work than we performed.
Before publishing editorial material, we check important names, dates, places, quotations, links and practical details against the available evidence. We favor original documents, direct reporting and identifiable sources, and make clear when information comes from another publication or an interested party.
We preserve the meaning of quotations when shortening an interview. We check consequential transcription errors against the recording when available and distinguish paraphrase from direct quotation. We do not invent interviews, quotations, witnesses or sources.
A routine event announcement may rely on the organizer’s information. A consequential allegation or a health, legal, financial or public-safety claim needs stronger scrutiny. When the evidence is inadequate, we may seek corroboration, narrow the claim, explain uncertainty, delay publication or leave it out.
We favor named sources. Before accepting information on a confidential basis, we discuss the terms and practical limits with the source. Anonymity is not a substitute for checking a claim. Please contact us before sending sensitive material rather than assuming an ordinary email establishes an off-the-record agreement.
Fairness and editorial independence
We consider local relevance, usefulness, timeliness, available evidence and our ability to cover a subject responsibly. Popularity alone does not determine what deserves attention.
Before publishing a serious allegation about an identifiable person or organization, we make reasonable efforts to seek their response, with timing appropriate to the circumstances. We describe the response—or the lack of one—accurately. Silence does not establish guilt, agreement or endorsement.
People may suggest corrections and provide context without receiving control over independent coverage. We may check a quotation or factual detail with a source, but that does not grant approval of the entire story.
We consider perspectives on their evidence and relevance, not simply to create an equal number of opposing quotations. We identify opinion and distinguish an allegation from an established finding.
A source’s advertising status, institutional position or past criticism of HastingsNow does not determine whether a factual correction is warranted.
Paid work, sponsorships and relationships
HastingsNow offers photography, video and storytelling services. Client projects have agreed subjects and deliverables. When published material promotes a paying client, we identify it as advertising rather than presenting it as independently selected coverage.
We use understandable labels such as “Advertisement” or “Paid advertisement,” identify the advertiser, and place the disclosure where readers or viewers encounter the material. Our own promotional posts and videos carry the relevant disclosure; a notice on this policy page alone is not enough.
When a sponsor supports genuinely independent reporting or a series, we disclose that support and describe the sponsor’s actual role. We say that a sponsor had no editorial control only when that is true.
We disclose relationships relevant to understanding the work, including paid client work, significant personal or business connections, and gifts, equipment or other support connected to coverage. When a conflict cannot be handled responsibly through disclosure and safeguards, we may decline or change the assignment.
Because the same small team may work on editorial and client projects, we make the distinction through clear agreements, disclosures and publication decisions—not a claim that we operate separate departments.
Payment does not buy source verification, a favorable independent conclusion, removal of an accurate unfavorable fact, or guaranteed LOCAL 10 selection. All published work remains subject to factual correction.
Memberships and contribution programs do not guarantee publication or purchase authority on a subject. Relevant financial relationships are disclosed when they matter to a published contribution.
Credit, collaboration and the Community Guide
We credit original reporting and creative work, link readers to relevant sources, and use other people’s material with an appropriate permission, license or other valid basis. Attribution does not replace the need to address reuse rights.
We do not present another outlet’s reporting as our own or reproduce an article as a substitute for visiting the original publication. Collaborations should specify credit, responsibilities, permitted uses and any compensation before work begins.
Our Community Guide is independently assembled. Inclusion is free and does not establish a partnership, endorsement or verification of everything a listed source publishes. Organizations may suggest edits to their descriptions; HastingsNow remains responsible for the published wording.
Suggestions for stories or guide additions do not require a purchase. Publication and inclusion remain editorial decisions.
AI, photography, video and audio
We may use AI to assist with research, transcription, organization, drafting, editing, illustration and media production. AI output is not an independent source of facts. A human remains responsible for checking editorial material before publication; the automated feeds described above are a separate format.
We explain material AI involvement when it affects how a reasonable reader would understand the work. Routine spelling or formatting assistance does not require the same treatment as synthetic voices, generated scenes or substantially AI-developed explainers.
Documentary images and recordings should represent the people, places and events they depict. Cropping, tonal adjustments and audio cleanup must not change their factual meaning. We do not use generative changes to create evidence of something that did not happen.
AI-generated illustrations, composites and reconstructions are identified as interpretations, not documentary photographs or recordings. A real reference photograph does not make a substantially generated scene an authentic record of that moment. Anonymization that affects interpretation is explained without defeating its protective purpose.
AI-generated narration or discussion is identified as synthetic. It is not presented as an actual conversation, interview or endorsement by people or organizations discussed. We do not fabricate quotations or use someone’s cloned voice as an apparent contribution without permission.
We avoid exposing confidential or sensitive source material to AI services without appropriate authorization and safeguards. We also check generated text inside graphics: an illustration can contain a factual error just as an article can.
Privacy, dignity and accessibility
We weigh public usefulness against unnecessary harm, especially in material involving children, vulnerable people, bereavement, health or personal safety.
We seek appropriate permission for planned interviews or individualized promotional features involving children and consider their comfort as well as a parent’s or guardian’s authorization. Public-event coverage still calls for care with identifying details and sensitive situations.
Private administrative contacts are not treated as approved public business information. We do not publish a home address or personal contact number as a business listing without appropriate authorization.
We consider privacy and safety concerns individually. Availability in a public record or social post does not, by itself, settle whether republishing a detail is appropriate.
We work to make material usable through readable text, understandable links, captions and image descriptions where practical. Tell us when a format, image, video or link creates an access barrier.
Request a correction or raise a concern
Email info@HastingsNow.com with “Correction or concern” and the page or story title in the subject line.
Please include:
Where the issue appears: a page or post link, screenshot, publication date or audio/video timestamp.
What needs attention: the particular statement, image, attribution, disclosure, privacy issue or access problem.
Your proposed correction or context: supporting evidence is helpful, but you do not need a formal document to alert us.
How to reach you: a reply address or preferred contact method for questions.
Do not send passwords, identity documents or unnecessary sensitive information. When a request involves changing an organization’s official contact details or acting for another person, we may ask for proportionate confirmation of authority. Reporting an ordinary factual error does not require that you represent the subject.
Our inbox is not an emergency service or continuously monitored. Time-sensitive privacy and safety concerns receive priority when identified. We aim to acknowledge actionable requests and explain the outcome, but do not promise a fixed response or resolution time.
Requests are evaluated on their substance, not the requester’s ability to pay. A correction request is not a marketing signup.
What happens after a request
We examine the published material and relevant evidence, seek additional information when necessary, and determine the appropriate response. We may correct an error, add context, improve attribution or labeling, update information, or temporarily restrict material while reviewing a serious concern.
We may also conclude that the existing material is supported. When practicable, we explain that decision. Disagreement with a conclusion does not automatically establish a factual error, but it can identify missing context worth examining.
How changes are identified
Correction: We fix information that was wrong when published. A material correction receives a dated note explaining what was wrong and what changed. We do not disguise a substantive error as a routine update.
Clarification: We make wording or context clearer where the earlier presentation could reasonably mislead. Material clarifications are identified.
Update: We add later information or reflect changed circumstances. An event canceled after an accurate announcement is an update, not necessarily an error in the original report.
Minor spelling, punctuation or formatting fixes that do not alter meaning may be made without a public note.
When an error appeared in multiple HastingsNow versions, we work to correct the versions we control. Where editing is unavailable, we may publish a visible follow-up, replace the material or remove a misleading version. We cannot guarantee changes to third-party copies or caches.
We keep an internal record of significant correction and removal decisions. Public notes explain the change without unnecessarily exposing private correspondence or the person who raised the concern.
Removal and reconsideration
We consider removal, redaction and anonymization requests based on accuracy, privacy, safety, relevance and the value of retaining a reliable record. Discomfort with accurate coverage does not automatically require deletion. Neither does preserving an archive justify leaving harmful private information exposed.
To request reconsideration, reply to our decision or email info@HastingsNow.com with “Editorial review request” in the subject. Explain what remains unresolved and provide any additional evidence. Where practical, another team member will review the matter. This is an internal review, not an independent appeals panel.
Good-faith criticism is welcome. In spaces we moderate, we may restrict threats, impersonation, spam or the exposure of private information. Criticism alone is not a reason to suppress a substantive concern.
A living publication—and a clear record
We preserve publication dates and distinguish later reporting from earlier information. Older stories and photographs should not be made to appear current without explanation. A growing archive does not mean every past business detail, event listing or offer is continuously updated.
These standards also guide our review of older work when a concern is raised. Labels and workflows may be refined over time; a published policy is not proof that every past item has already been audited.
We do not describe verification tools, content credentials, automated safeguards or public correction systems as active before they are in use. When we revise these standards, we update the page’s revision date and explain significant changes.
Questions, corrections and constructive criticism are part of making HastingsNow better.
Peter and Ashley
HastingsNow.com · Local Pigeon, LLC
info@HastingsNow.com
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