Editorial Independence Policy
The Nashville Banner retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. We maintain a firewall between news coverage decisions and all sources of revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions.
We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities, but our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support.
We may accept donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but our organization maintains editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.
We will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. We may accept anonymous donations for general support, but only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards have been put into place that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by our organization and in compliance with INN’s Membership Standards.
Corrections Policy
The Nashville Banner is committed to accuracy and promptly corrects errors of fact or confusing or misleading statements. We are ethically bound to correct errors — including but not limited to misstatements, factual errors, misleading statements and inaccurate quotations — as soon as they are verified.
Reporters are required to alert their editor to any complaint or error that becomes known to them and investigate. If a correction is necessary, it must be posted by an editor as soon as possible at the bottom of the story, in italics, and contain the following information:
- A clear statement admitting the mistake and setting the record straight. Ideally, this statement does not repeat the original error, but is allowable if the correction cannot be conveyed concisely and clearly without doing so.
- The date of the correction.
- Be labeled an “editor’s note” and acknowledge the story was corrected.
- To request a correction, please email our editor, Steve Cavendish or our Newsroom.
Statement of Diversity
The Nashville Banner was founded to empower ALL people of Nashville by providing independent, non-partisan journalism. To fulfill our mission, we must ensure our work reflects the communities we cover and our staff the population we serve. Building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive news organization necessitates ongoing commitments to both the community and the newsroom:
Community
The complex issues we face as a society require respect for different viewpoints. Race and ethnicity, class, generation, geography and other factors all affect point of view. To tell the stories of all of Nashville:
- Including diverse voices and experiences in our reporting, especially those from outside dominant cultural perspectives
- Telling and sharing stories with respect, empathy and accuracy
- Being cognizant of the harms media institutions have too often perpetuated against historically disadvantaged communities
- Actively working to break down stereotypes and bigotry
Newsroom
A diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace is essential for any news organization to succeed, leading to more nuanced stories and a better-informed community. We recognize this work can’t be done by one type of journalist, nor is it enough to simply hire journalists and staff from historically marginalized backgrounds. To promote diversity in journalism we commit to:
- Increasing the range of backgrounds, experiences, and interests at the Nashville Banner
- Listening carefully to the ideas of all staff members
- Creating a welcoming, inclusive, and rewarding work environment for all current and future staff
- Enabling groups of people underrepresented in newsrooms to thrive and succeed in journalism as a career
Our goal is to make the Banner an example for other news organizations to follow by perpetually striving to promote diversity in journalism in Tennessee.
Note: This statement borrows or takes inspiration from the diversity statements of CalMatters, The Colorado Sun, The Marshall Project, The New York Times, ProPublica, and others.
Donor and Financial Transparency Policy
Our work is made possible by the generous support of individuals, foundations, donor-advised funds, corporations, businesses, and other nonprofits for purposes that help the organization further and fulfill its mission.
The following policies and guidelines govern acceptance of gifts made to the Nashville Banner for the benefit of any of our operations, programs or services:
- We make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more. We may accept anonymous donations for general support, but anonymous donations may not exceed 15% of total annual revenue.
- We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals, organizations and foundations to help with our general operations, coverage of specific topics and special projects.
- We will not accept donations from sources who, deemed by our board of directors, present a conflict of interest with our work or compromise our independence.
The Nashville Banner is a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, Federal Tax ID #83-1703750.