Editorial standards
Lower League Report is commited to producing accurate, fair, and engaging coverage of the clubs, players, supporters, communities, and stories that make the lower level of the game worth following.
These standards guide our reporting, photography, interviews, and other editorial work.
Accuracy
Accuracy comes before speed.
We make reasonable efforts to verify information before publication. Information may be verified through interviews, official records, club and league communications, firsthand reporting, reputable sources, and other available documentation.
When information cannot be independently confirmed, we aim to make that clear to readers.
Interviews and Quotations
Quotes from interviews should accurately represent what a source said and the context in which it was said.
Lower League Report may lightly edit quotations for clarity, length, or readability when doing so does not change the speaker’s meaning.
We do not knowingly fabricate quotes, sources, interviews, or firsthand reporting.
Editorial Tools and Artificial Intelligence
Lower League Report may use artificial intelligence and other digital tools to assist with parts of the editorial process, including drafting, editing, transcription, summarization, headline development, research organization, and formatting.
AI-generated output is not treated as an independent source of fact.
Content intended for publication is reviewed by a human member of Lower League Report before publication. Editors and contributors are responsible for evaluating factual claims, correcting errors, maintaining appropriate context, and ensuring that the final work meets our editorial standards.
Artificial intelligence is not used to fabricate interviews, quotations, sources, events, or firsthand observations.
Our use of editorial technology does not change our responsibility for the material we publish.
Sourcing
We aim to attribute information to its original or most authoritative available source whenever practical.
Anonymous or confidential sources may be used when there is a legitimate editorial reason to protect a source’s identity. Information provided anonymously is evaluated based on the source’s credibility, proximity to information, and whether it can be independently supported.
Rumors and unconfirmed reports should be identified as such.
Independence
Editorial decisions are made based on newsworthiness, relevance, reader interest, and the editorial judment of Lower League Report.
Receiving media credentials, complimentary admission, access to players or staff, hospitality, or other normal accommodations associated with covering an event does not guarantee favorable coverage.
Organizations providing access to Lower League Report do not receive editorial approval over independent coverage unless an arrangement has been specifically identified as sponsored, partnered, or promotional content.
Partnerships and Sponsored Content
Lower League Report may work with clubs, leagues, businesses, organizations, and other partners.
Commercial relationships do not automatically determine our editorial coverage.
Paid, sponsored, promotional, or otherwise commercially influenced content should be clearly identified when appropriate so readers can distinguish it from independent editorial coverage.
Photography and Visual Media
Our photography is intended to document events accurately while respecting the people and communities we cover.
Images may undergo normal editorial adjustments such as cropping, exposure correction, color correction, sharpening, or other processing that does not materially misrepresent the scene being documented.
Images presented as documentary photography should not be manipulated in a way that creates a materially false representation of an event.
Conflicts of Interest
Contributors should avoid circumstances in which personal, financial, professional, or organizational relationships improperly influence editorial coverage.
When a significant potential conflict is relevant to a story, Lower League Report may disclose that relationship to readers or assign the coverage to another contributor when practical.
Corrections
We want our reporting to be accurate. When we learn that we have published a significant factual error, we will make reasonable efforts to correct it promptly.
Minor spelling, grammar, formatting, or style changes may be corrected without an editor’s note. Material corrections that substantially affect the meaning or accuracy of a story may include a correction or update notice.
Readers, clubs, players, organizations, and other sources are encouraged to contact us if they believe something we have published contains an error.
Fairness and Right of Response
When reporting serious criticism, allegations, disputes, or other potentially damaging claims about an edentifiable person or organization, we aim to seek relevant context and, when appropriate and reasonably possible, provide the subject an opportunity to respond before publication.
Not receiving a response does not necessarily prevent publication.
Editorial Judgment
Not every decision can be addressed by a written policy.
Lower League Report reserves editorial discretion over what we cover, how stories are presented, which photographs are published, and when previously published material is updated.
Our goal is to make those decisions consistently with the principles of accuracy, fairness, independence, transparency, and respect for the communities we cover.
Questions About Our Standards
Questions, corrections, or concerns regarding Lower League Report’s editorial practices may be submitted through our email (listed in the footer) or via our contact page.