Out Publications is the publication company located at Unit 10. Level 1,330 Wattle Street Ultimo, NSW, 2007.

The guidelines below are the General Principles by which Out Publications uses for all print and online publication purposes.

If anyone has any doubt about these principles or an issue they are urged to contact their editor or the publisher immediately.

Guidelines & Principles

  1. Complaints Handling Process
  1. Out Publications has sought membership with the Australian Press Council. The processes listed here will remain in place unless and until the company’s membership application has been accepted.
  2. All complaints should be addressed to the Editor in writing. Emails can be sent to [email protected]  or letters can be posted to Out Publications PO Box 843 Broadway NSW 2007.
  3. Out Publications has adopted the Charter of a Free Press in Australia. We believe it is the role of the press in a western democracy to publish a diverse range of opinions, to expose malfeasance and to hold government officials accountable in a free and unfettered press.
  4. Out Publications is a member of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA). Our shared mission is to serve as a “global voice for the rights of those who face discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and/or sex characteristics.”  We will not publish comments or opinions that are disparaging of our community.
  5. We actively encourage readers’ comments which can be posted at www.starobserver.com.au as well as on our various social media platforms.
  6. Opinion pieces, which are clearly flagged as such, represent the opinion of the writer and not necessarily those of the publisher.

  7. We aim to acknowledge complaints three working days of receipt. In making a complaint, readers agree to respond promptly to any request for further information. Our complaints process is free of charge, regardless of outcome. If we receive multiple complaints about the same issue we may make one response to all. We will respond to all complaints within 28 days of receiving all the necessary information to allow us to investigate.
  8. While we strive to check facts, seek comments and provide balanced reporting in our news coverage, errors occur from time to time. If factual errors have occurred in reporting a story, Out Publications will print a correction online. The publisher reserves the right to publish corrections in its newsprint edition. The Editor will from time to time amend the online copy in order to correct any errors that might otherwise remain on the public record.
  9. We may offer a complainant the right of reply if we believe this is an appropriate remedy. This might take the form of a follow up story or an opinion piece which would be offered at the discretion of the publisher.
  10. In the event that the parties are unable to reach an amicable resolution in relation to a complaint, Out Publications will without notice refer any such matters to the Australia Press Council.

 

Stories and articles published by Out Publications will at all times strive for:

Accuracy and Clarity

1. All writers will ensure that their reporting is factual, accurate and not intended to mislead and differs from comment or opinion.

2. If it falls into comment or opinion it must be published as such.

 

Fairness and Balance

3. All stories should seek to be fair and present a balanced point of view and comments.
4. If a story is critical of a person or organisation they should be given a chance to comment.

 

Privacy

5. Do not contact a person out of working hours unless by prearrangement.
6. Do not publish a persons name if they have indicated they do not wish this.

 

Integrity and Transparency

7. Do not publish material that has not been gathered in a fair or just manner.
8. Do not engage in a story where there is a conflict of interest unless that is disclosed and does not influence the written material.

 

Copyright

9. Ensure that any material used, be it image or written, is clear of all copyright, and where copyright does exit, make sure that you have written permission to use the material and give credit where appropriate.

 

Transcripts

10. Keep all records such as note books, tapes, SD cards and transcripts of interviews as a record.

 

Photography and Images

11. Ensure that all photos, cartoons and images taken from web pages such as Google Images, Wikimedia Commons and Flickr are free to use and give appropriate credit for the source.
12. If engaging a photographer for a particular story make sure that you outline the conditions of that engagement before the shoot.

13. Any digital manipulation of an image should be noted in the caption.

For Out Publication’s purposes all images should be 1mb and over in size.

 

Collection of Personal Information

14. It is appropriate to source personal information from public sources such as FaceBook and LinkedIn but discretion should be used about what to use.

 

Expert Knowledge

15. As writers we are not experts in many matters such as health, law and theoretical particle physics and should leave explanations to the experts.
16. Personal or anecdotal experiences should be written as such.

 

Use of Religious and Ethnic Terms in Headline or Story

17. Best to avoid in headlines and be careful writing into the story to make sure that it does not generalise or marginalise.

 

LGBTQI

18. The term LGBTQI covers a very diverse group of people and many may identify as belonging to more than one category.

19. If doing a story with members of the LGBTQI community make sure you ask that the subject on how they would like to be represented.

20.Our writers also adhere to the princicples outlined by the Australia Press Council in relation to reporting on the LGBTQI community.

Drugs

21. If doing a story on drugs make sure that you do not identify where they can be sourced, what the lethal dose is and any detailed instruction on how to use.
22. Do not glamourise the use of drugs.
23. If the story is about addiction list at least one organisation that can provide help at the end of the story.

 

Family or Domestic Violence

24. If using a person’s name in a story on family or domestic violence make sure that there is no court order preventing this and never write the story where an address can be identified.

There are more than 40 possible infractions when dealing with domestic violence of family law.

 

Reporting on Suicide

25. Be respectful of anyone associated with the victim, including witnesses.
26. Do not jump to conclusions as to why or how the person died.
27. Do not describe in any detail the method used to cause death.

 

Digital/Print Divide

28. The same rules that apply to print publication are to be applied to online publication.

 

Social Media

29. No employee or intern for Out Publications will use social media such as FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram etc to bring Out Publications into disrepute.

30. Social media is not to be used to attack any person or persons mentioned in Out Publications products.

 

 

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