About Us

Neil Oliver

Chief Executive Officer and President, Metroland

Angus Scott

Editor-in-Chief

Our Journalistic Standards

The Torstar Journalistic Standards Guide provides a comprehensive code of journalistic principles and conduct to guide Welland Tribune journalists in their mission to responsibly engage and connect our readers on all platforms with trusted news, information and content.

Here are the general editorial principles that provide the foundation for this guide:

RESPONSIBILITY

the Tribune has responsibilities to its customers, its clients, its shareholders and its employees. But the operation of a news organization is, above all, a public trust, no less binding because it is not formally conferred. Our overriding responsibility is to the democratic society.

Freedom of expression and of the press must be defended against encroachment from any quarter, public or private. Journalists must ensure that the public’s business is conducted in public. They must be vigilant against all who would exploit the press for selfish purposes.

Journalists who abuse the power of their professional roles for selfish motives or unworthy purposes are faithless to that public trust.

ACCESS

the Tribune is a forum for the interchange of information and opinion. It should provide for the expression of disparate and conflicting views. It should give expression to the interests of minorities as well as majorities, of the powerless as well as the powerful. 

ACCURACY AND TRUTH

Good faith with the reader is the foundation of ethical and excellent journalism. That good faith rests primarily on the reader’s confidence that what we print is correct. Every effort must be made to ensure that everything published in the Tribune is accurate, is presented in context, and that all significant sides are presented fairly.

Journalistic integrity demands that significant errors of fact, as well as errors of omission, should be corrected promptly and as prominently and transparently as warranted. 

FAIRNESS

the Tribune should respect the rights of people involved in the news, be transparent and stand accountable to the public for the fairness and reliability of everything it publishes. Fair news reports provide relevant context, do not omit relevant facts and aim to be honest with readers about what we know and what we do not know. Our core fairness standard demands that any subject of potentially harmful allegations must be given opportunity to respond.

INDEPENDENCE

Independence from those we cover is a key principle of journalistic integrity. We avoid conflicts of interest and the appearance of conflicts. the Tribune believes in paying the costs incurred in gathering and publishing news. In circumstances where that may not be possible, we disclose information that could create the perception of a conflict of interest. Transparency with our readers and openness about the potential for conflicts should guide our considerations about real or perceived conflicts.

IMPARTIALITY

To be impartial does not require a news organization to be unquestioning or to refrain from editorial expression. Sound practice, however, demands a clear distinction for readers between news and opinion. All content that contains explicit opinion or personal interpretation should be clearly identified as opinion or analysis, as appropriate.

PRIVACY

Every person has a right to privacy. There are inevitable conflicts between the right to privacy, the public good and the public’s right to be informed about the conduct of public affairs. Each case should be judged in the light of common sense and humanity.

Accuracy and Corrections Policy

Here are some of the core policies included in our Standards Guide:

There can be no compromise with accuracy. Accuracy is our most basic contract with readers and is the responsibility of everyone in our newsrooms. Accuracy is grounded in verification, the essence of journalism. We must check and double-check all the information we publish, including information from all other publications.

Mistakes will happen. When they do, we correct our errors. Corrections serve the reader and they serve the public record. They are essential to building and maintaining trust with our readers. Anyone who becomes aware of a possible error has responsibility for alerting those responsible for corrections in their newsrooms.

Our corrections are guided by the core principles of accountability and transparency. We are accountable to our readers for the accuracy of the information we publish in stories, headlines, photos, cutlines, social media, graphics, data, videos and any other content on all of our platforms. We correct errors of fact in a clear, transparent manner on the platform(s) in which the error was published, as promptly as possible. We make clear to readers the correct information and the context and magnitude of the mistake.

On all of our platforms, it should be clear to readers how to report a possible error. Readers can do so by emailing corrections@niagaradailies.co or, on StCatharinesStandard.ca, readers can report possible errors directly on an article page by selecting the "Report an Error" icon.

Diversity Policy

Inclusiveness is at the heart of thinking and acting as journalists. Torstar newsrooms aim to reflect the diversity of our communities and respect the human rights and equal dignity of all. We aim for a variety of voices as sources and contributors in our news and opinion.We seek to foster greater community understanding about ethnicity, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic status and physical/mental ability and do not perpetuate hurtful stereotypes.

Generally no reference, direct or indirect, should be made to a person’s race, colour or religion unless it is pertinent to the story.

In the case of a missing person or a criminal suspect at large, there may be justification for identifying race or colour as part of a full description that provides as many details as possible. Avoid vague descriptions that serve no purpose. At times, a group may make race a public issue. In such cases, the person’s race becomes relevant to the news.

Religion is important to the lives of many of our readers. We should not hold up one religion or set of beliefs as superior to another. Do not single out a religion or religious practice for ridicule or stereotyping or use profanities considered offensive to any religions.

We treat men and women equally and respect diverse gender identities, including people who identify as neither male nor female.

Torstar is committed to this same inclusivness and diversity reflective of our communities in its hiring, promotion, development and retention of its staff.

Anonymity and Confidential Sources

The public interest is best served when news sources are identified by their full names. Torstar journalists are aggressive in pressing sources to put information on the record and seek independently to corroborate off-the-record information.

We do not provide anonymity to those who attack individuals or organizations or engage in speculation — the unattributed cheap shot. People under attack in our publications have the right to know their accusers.

There are times when reporters need confidential sources to serve readers and democracy. Responsible journalism in the public interest often depends on these confidential sources who give journalists information that powerful people seek to keep secret. There are times also when some sources, such as underage or other vulnerable people, may require anonymity in telling their stories.

Torstar journalists must discuss using confidential sources with their department head, and in some cases the newsroom’s most senior editor. They must always reveal the source’s identity to editors, and provide a compelling argument for why the source will not be named in news reports. Senior editors have responsibility to work with reporters to assess the credibility of all sources including confidential sources.

Once any promise is made to grant anonymity, we protect our source, only revealing their identity with that person’s permission.

Published articles must explain why sources have been granted anonymity and why we consider them authoritative and credible. Confidential sources should have first-hand knowledge of the information and this must be conveyed to the reader. We should publish as much information as possible about the source — including why they sought confidentiality — without revealing identity.

The definitions and ground rules for not naming a source must be discussed with sources. Any further promises made or deals brokered with any source must be discussed in advance with senior editors and are subject to the following:

• Composites, where several sources are compiled into one person, are not used. Pseudonyms are used only rarely, with a senior editor’s permission, and must be declared as such in stories.

• The source and the journalist must be clear on what has been agreed to and that agreement must be shared with the department manager. Torstar journalists keep their promises.

Conflict of Interest

Independence from those we cover is a key principle of journalistic integrity. We avoid conflicts of interest and the appearance of conflicts. In circumstances where that may not be possible, we disclose information that could create the perception of a conflict of interest. Transparency with our readers and openness about the potential for conflicts should guide our considerations about real or perceived conflicts.

These policies apply to all outside interests that could cause our audiences to question the fairness and independence of our journalism.

We seek primarily to ensure that our reporters’ reputations as fair-minded fact-finders are not compromised by public displays of political or partisan views on public issues, nor influenced by personal involvement or personal axe-grinding on issues we cover.

Opinion journalists have greater leeway on these matters, in line with the latitude to express their own views in their work.

All Torstar editorial staff should inform their immediate supervisors of any outside activity that could result in a conflict of interest, or reasonably perceived conflict of interest, that could cause our audiences to question the integrity of our work.

These policies are not intended to restrict the personal lives, interests or expressions of beliefs of Torstar journalists outside their work lives. Rather, as has been established through various arbitration processes across the company, they seek to ensure that any such personal activities and interests do not come into conflict with the public role of our news organizations in any way that could be seen to compromise our editorial independence and integrity.

News and Opinions

the Tribune clearly labels content on all platforms to draw a clear line between news and opinion. This glossary provides definitions for various types of news and opinion we publish.

NEWS

News content is verified information based on the impartial reporting of facts, either observed by the reporter or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. News reports do not include the opinion of the author.

News Terms

Analysis: A critical or contextual examination of an important and topical issue based on factual reporting. It provides an explanation of the impact or meaning of news events and draws on the authority and expertise of the writer. Analysis articles do not contain the author’s opinions.

Investigation: In-depth reporting in the public interest that reveals wrongdoing and/or systemic problems, holds those in power accountable and promotes positive change.

OPINION

Opinion articles based are based on personal interpretation and judgment of facts. Opinion journalists have wide latitude to express their own views, subject to standards of taste and laws of libel including views directly contrary to the editorial views of the Tribune.

Opinion Terms

Editorial: An article that presents a point of view reflecting the news organization's position on an issue of public interest. Editorials are not meant to be a neutral presentation of the facts. They are written by journalists who are expressing the view of the news organization. As an editorial serves to present the company’s voice, there is no individual byline.

Opinion: Articles based on the author’s interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. Opinion articles include columns written by staff and commentary from non-staff contributors. Opinion journalists have wide latitude to express their own views including views directly contrary to the news organization's editorial views, as long as they fall within the boundaries of taste and laws of libel. Columnists should not engage in personal axe-grinding or internecine debates with other columnists who write for either their own or other publications.

Advice: An advice article reflects the opinion of the author, who provides guidance or direction on a topic based on their expertise as well as their personal interpretations and judgments of facts.

Blog: An online journal updated regularly by a journalist or editorial department that supplements news coverage. Blogs are usually informal or conversational in style and may reflect a writer’s opinions, subject to the rights and responsibilities of fair comment.

First person: Narratives exploring an author’s insights, observations or thoughts based on that individual’s personal experience and opinions.

Readers’ letters: A selection of letters by readers expressing a point of view, usually concerning a recently published article or current event.

Review: A critical assessment of the merits of a subject, such as art, film, music, television, food or literature. Reviews are based on the writer’s informed/expert opinion.

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You may download and print a limited amount of wellandtribune.ca content for your personal, noncommercial use. You also may, on an occasional and irregular basis, include excerpts or limited portions of wellandtribune.ca information in printed memos, reports and presentations. You must attribute this information to us by including the statement "Used with permission from Welland Tribune, wellandtribune.ca Copyright Welland Tribune. All rights reserved."

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