LRTVS NewsWatch publishes news for the people of Berbice and Guyana. These standards govern how our reporting is gathered, written and published. They apply to every story we broadcast on Channels 10 and 16 and to every article on lrtvsnewswatch.com.
Accuracy
We publish what we can verify. Every fact, name, figure, title and quotation in an LRTVS NewsWatch report must be traceable to a source our newsroom has seen or heard directly — a recorded interview, an official statement, a document, or a reporter’s own observation at the scene. We do not fill gaps with assumption. Where a detail cannot be confirmed, we either leave it out or say plainly that it is unconfirmed.
Attribution
Quotations are reproduced as they were spoken. We do not paraphrase inside quotation marks and we do not compress separate statements into a single quote. Where a speaker’s name or exact title cannot be confirmed, we identify the speaker by role — “the minister”, “a regional official”, “a resident” — rather than guess.
Unverified claims
Allegations, eyewitness accounts and claims that conflict with official statements may be reported where they are relevant and in the public interest, but they are always identified as such. We say who is making the claim and we note when it has not been independently verified.
Sources
We name our sources wherever we responsibly can. We grant anonymity only where a source faces a genuine risk in speaking and the information is of clear public importance, and we tell readers why a source is unnamed. Anonymous information is corroborated before it is published.
Fairness and right of reply
Any person or organisation criticised in an LRTVS NewsWatch report is given a fair opportunity to respond before publication where circumstances allow. Where a response could not be obtained in time, we say so, and we add the response when it is received.
Separation of news and commercial interests
Advertising, sponsorship and commercial arrangements have no influence on news coverage. Advertisers are not shown stories before publication and cannot obtain, alter or suppress coverage. Sponsored material is labelled as such and is never presented as news.
Conflicts of interest
Little Rock Television Station Inc. is part of a group of companies under common ownership. LRTVS NewsWatch does not report on its own parent company or on affiliated businesses as though they were independent news subjects. Where a story unavoidably involves an affiliated company, the relationship is disclosed in the story itself. LRTVS NewsWatch is not a source of independent verification for any company under the same ownership.
Sensitive reporting
In reporting on death, serious injury, crime and grief we identify victims only after the appropriate authorities or family have made the identification public. We do not publish graphic detail beyond what is necessary to understand the event, and we take particular care in reporting involving children.
Use of technology
Editorial tools, including software used to prepare transcripts and draft copy from our own recorded reports, are used only on material our newsroom has gathered. No LRTVS NewsWatch story is published without a person in the newsroom taking responsibility for its accuracy. Tools are never used to generate facts, quotations or sources.
Plagiarism
We do not reproduce the work of other news organisations as our own. Where we cite another outlet’s reporting, we name it.
Questions
Concerns about any LRTVS NewsWatch report may be raised through our Contact and news tips page. Requests to correct a published report are handled under our Corrections policy.