Pepper Publishing Pty Ltd – Newcastle Weekly magazine and newcastleweekly.com.au

Editorial Guidelines

Pepper Publishing Pty Ltd, publisher of Newcastle Weekly magazine and newcastleweekly.com.au, is a member of the Australian Press Council and as such is bound by its Statement of General Principles and Standards of Practice.

The Statement of General Principles are listed below:

Accuracy and clarity

1. Ensure that factual material in news reports and elsewhere is accurate and not misleading, and is distinguishable from other material such as opinion.

2. Provide a correction or other adequate remedial action if published material is significantly inaccurate or misleading.

Fairness and balance

3. Ensure that factual material is presented with reasonable fairness and balance, and that writers’ expressions of opinion are not based on significantly inaccurate factual material or omission of key facts.

4. Ensure that where material refers adversely to a person, a fair opportunity is given for subsequent publication of a reply if that is reasonably necessary to address a possible breach of General Principle 3.

Privacy and avoidance of harm

5. Avoid intruding on a person’s reasonable expectations of privacy, unless doing so is sufficiently in the public interest.

6. Avoid causing or contributing materially to substantial offence, distress or prejudice, or a substantial risk to health or safety, unless doing so is sufficiently in the public interest.

Integrity and transparency

7. Avoid publishing material which has been gathered by deceptive or unfair means, unless doing so is sufficiently in the public interest.

8. Ensure that conflicts of interests are avoided or adequately disclosed, and that they do not influence published material.

The General Principles, Standards of Practice and Advisory Guidelines are found on the Australian Press Council’s website. https://www.presscouncil.org.au

Complaint Handling Guidelines

Pepper Publishing’s policy is to deal with errors and complaints as promptly as possible. The procedure is this:

All complaints must be immediately referred to the editor.

Do not attempt to resolve a complaint yourself without advising the editor first and discussing it.

The editor shall, where ever possible, engage with the complainant in person or by telephone call, in preference to email or text. A personal discussion usually clarifies the nature of the complaint quickly and allows prompt resolution and satisfaction.

If appropriate, complainants are offered right of reply via a correction; or a statement; or a story amplifying or correcting the matter complained of.

Pepper Publishing Pty Ltd is bound by Australian Press Council (APC) standards and, should the complaint remain unresolved by these means, the complainant is referred to the APC. The APC can be telephoned on (02)9000 1000 or emailed at  [email protected].

Complaints Entailing Defamation Risk

Where a complaint involves a threat of legal action (whether by the complainant, a solicitor’s letter or other internal or external advice or comment) the matter must be escalated to the Publisher.

Nicole Shelley 02 4003 4448
E: [email protected]

Pepper Publishing Pty Ltd’s policy is to move quickly to correct mistakes and errors in the next available edition with either an appropriate clarification, correction or apology.