Code Of Ethics

ThePrint is committed to journalism that involves a responsible, honest, objective and fair pursuit of facts, without any partisan and political affiliation or allegiance to special interest groups. Our guiding philosophy is liberal on society, liberal on economy.

We pledge to generate editorial content that reflects and fosters the openness of public discourse outside the newsroom and also sets a benchmark for quality and integrity. We are accountable to audiences for the trust they invest in us, by capturing the news, debate and opinion in a manner that is transparent and avoids conflicts of interest.

All editorial material published under ThePrint banner (by employees, guests and contributors) is put through the highest standards of professional rigour, due diligence, accuracy, fairness and integrity that this Code demands.

Introduction

This Code of Ethics contains the basic guiding principles for every employee of ThePrint. It mandates the public, online, professional and personal conduct expected of them.

The reputation of ThePrint rests on the conduct of each of its employees, and on establishing uncompromising standards to avoid conflict of interest or even the appearance of conflict of interest.

This document is a binding commitment for all employees of ThePrint and is signed by them in acknowledgement. All non-editorial employees also acknowledge and understand this code and commit to not doing anything that violates its principles.

It is a living document and will evolve over time as fresh ideas and issues emerge in the fast-changing media environment. ThePrint has drafted this after studying the principles and best practices in respected media organisations, especially the publicly stated ethical codes of The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Indian Express. We acknowledge and thank these organisations.

Conflict of Interest

  • No employee of ThePrint will sign or publicly endorse petitions, campaigns, or advocacy initiatives unless the organisation itself has decided to participate in or support the cause.
  • No employee of ThePrint will donate money, raise funds, or publicly campaign for political parties, candidates, or organisations whose primary purpose is to advance political or partisan causes.
  • Employees must disclose to their supervisors any personal, financial, professional, familial, or other relationships with governments, political organisations, businesses, civil society groups, advocacy organisations, or individuals who may be the subject of ThePrint’s coverage. Such relationships may require reassignment of coverage or other safeguards.
  • Employees must not undertake part-time assignments, consulting work, advisory roles, board memberships, volunteer positions, or other associations — whether paid or unpaid — that could compromise, or reasonably appear to compromise, their independence, objectivity, or credibility.
  • We must create strict walls between ourselves and the subjects we cover and avoid active involvement in any partisan causes — politics, social action, demonstrations — that could compromise our independent ability to report, write and edit fairly. Any such association that is likely to create conflict must be reported to your respective editor.
  • Even when we attend an event that we advocate, we must represent ourselves as employees of ThePrint. We must at no point become participants. Affiliations, memberships or endorsements have the potential to damage our credibility.

External Engagements

  • Employees of ThePrint work for no one except ThePrint. Any freelance assignment must have the approval of the supervisors.
  • Writing for another publication — online or print — or appearing on TV/podcast/radio must be done only after permission is given. The article or appearance must identify the individual as part of the ThePrint group.
  • Writing under an assumed name is prohibited.
  • Accepting speaking engagements at conferences and seminars — paid and unpaid — must be cleared with the Editor.
  • Employees of ThePrint shall not establish, operate, or participate in any independent business, commercial enterprise, or profit-making venture while employed by ThePrint, unless expressly approved by the organisation in writing.
  • It is a full-time job, and should leave no time for studies/diplomas/online courses unless required for work and clearly approved by the Editor.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a sackable offence. Content sourced from other media sources or organisations must be attributed and not plagiarised. Lifting text, quotes and images without attribution is plagiarism. Images will not be digitally altered without disclosure.

Transparency

Employees cannot record conversations without prior consent from the people being interviewed. Recording without consent isn’t just about journalistic integrity, it is also illegal. ThePrint will not support such actions in a court of law. Journalists must disclose their identity to people they cover. They should not use false names, identities or credentials.

Use of AI

  • AI may be used for transcription, data processing and research assistance. It may also be used for headline suggestions and SEO optimisation.
  • Journalists must never present AI-generated material as authentic reporting and writing. In ALL published articles, the reporting and writing must be original with NO AI help, and the editing and re-writing must be done and verified by a human.
  • AI may be used for social media pitch suggestions, but final posts must have journalistic intervention.
  • AI-generated content — text, audio, video, images — must be suitably labelled as such.
  • Journalists and editors will be accountable for all published material. ThePrint remains committed to publishing original content with accuracy, fairness, transparency, independence and public trust.

Social Media Policy

  • A social media post by an employee of ThePrint is not their private viewpoint, it is published editorial material. It must pass the same test as editorial content published on ThePrint.
  • Employees must not express opinions that are not backed by ThePrint’s reportage, make offensive comments or engage in conduct that could undermine ThePrint’s credibility, reputation or editorial independence.
  • These guidelines apply to everyone in every department of ThePrint.

Advertisers

  • Advertisers or marketing concerns will not influence our news, analysis or opinion.
  • Advertisements will be marked in such a way that they are easily distinguishable from news content.
  • Sponsored editorial features at ThePrint must be clearly labelled and must be visibly different from editorial content.

Conduct

  • Employees of ThePrint will not accept expensive gifts from people in position or from people or institutions we cover. If there are gifts that appear inappropriate, expensive, or if the intention is suspect, employees must immediately inform the Editor.
  • ThePrint employee must not accept favours and hospitality. Free invitations to ticketed events must be declined, unless the purpose is to cover the event or if the seat is in the press gallery. There are some exceptions like invitations to meals.
  • Material provided to ThePrint employee in the course of work belongs to the organisation and must not be resold. These may include books, DVDs, pen drives, gadgets etc.
  • ThePrint employee will not use their press credentials to get out of situations where a law is broken. They will not seek commercial discounts that are not available to the general public. We must not accept preferential treatment because of the position we hold as employees of a media group.
  • ThePrint employee must be scrupulously free of obligation to news sources and to special interests. Our private behaviour as well as our professional behaviour must not bring discredit to our profession or to ThePrint.
  • Any disclosure after an alleged breach of the ethics will not be a mitigating factor.

Financial Disclosures

  • Employees of ThePrint must not buy or sell shares using information accessed by the organisation before it is published. Editorial employees of ThePrint will not trade in derivatives. Any shares bought must be held for at least one year and the total shareholding disclosed every six months in a sealed envelope to the HR head.
  • All employees of ThePrint who cover business and financial matters are required to disclose their financial holdings and investments to the Editor-in-Chief in a sealed envelope and avoid any potential for conflict.
  • ThePrint will disclose any sponsorship arrangement that may also be the subject of an editorial feature.

Attribution

  • At ThePrint, sources will be identified whenever possible. If a source is not named, ThePrint will provide a close description of the person — some kind of identification by ministry, organisation or by position, for example — in order to disclose possible prejudice.
  • ThePrint will also give a reason for not revealing their identity. When we agree to protect a source’s identity, it will not be revealed to anyone outside ThePrint.
  • No pseudonyms are to be used. We work with full disclosure of our identity, motives and methods.
  • Featuring tweets in an article is fine, but using private postings, including blogs, Substack, X threads, Facebook posts, in the copy without consent is prohibited. Such posts can be used or quoted only after consulting the Editor or in extraordinary situations.

External Links

  • Employees of ThePrint cannot be members of the board of another company or foundation — for profit or non-profit entity.
  • ThePrint employee must not engage in political advocacy — either as members of a political party, or an organisation concerned with political change — without the consent of the Editor.
  • ThePrint employee will send entries to award competitions only with the express approval of the Editor and disclose any likely conflict of interest in such competitions.
  • Invitation to an employee of ThePrint to travel out of the city/country, arranged by another organisation/business, needs to be cleared by the Editor. Any coverage based on such a trip will carry a clear disclosure that the visit was sponsored/hosted.

Copyright

Content from stories, interviews, videos, Twitter engagements, any social media lives that employees of ThePrint participate in is the property of ThePrint. Any one intending to write or assemble a book or article based on material must first obtain consent from the Editor.

Sting Operations

ThePrint does not permit sting operations. No journalist of ThePrint will obtain information by misrepresenting or hiding their identity. There will be no exceptions made to this rule. Threatening a source to part with information or promising positive coverage in return for information is strictly prohibited.

Discrimination

  • ThePrint will not publish offensive words, profanities and obscenities unless they are germane to the article. But even then, it is the decision of the Editor.
  • ThePrint will also not publish offensive, biased references to a person’s religion, caste, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability, unless directly relevant to the story.

Errors

ThePrint is committed to minimise and correct errors that occur. Readers who point out errors in our content must be treated with respect and thanked. When a correction is made, a line must acknowledge the error in the previous versions of the copy. Anything unfair or factually inaccurate will be duly acknowledged, with regret or apology wherever called for.

Fairness & Balance

ThePrint journalists are committed to produce content without prejudice or malice. Reporters must give reasonable time and opportunity to respond to those who are being mentioned adversely.