Drafts and publishing

Sensitive stories

Stories about crime, courts, deaths, serious injuries, minors, health emergencies or elections always wait for an editor.

Sudwire marks a story sensitive when it involves crime, courts, deaths, serious injuries, minors, health emergencies or elections: anything where a mistake could seriously harm someone.

#What happens to them

• They always wait for an editor, even with automatic publishing on.
• In WordPress they're marked Sensitive on the Newsroom screen, and the Sudwire Newsroom box says: “Sensitive story: check names, charges and figures against the source before publishing.”
• On your dashboard they show Needs an editor, and the Drafts tab has a filter for them.
• They never get stock photos. A photo from the source is only used when a check finds no recognisable people in it (see Photos).

Many drafts, sensitive or not, also come with a short note on what to double-check, like names, charges or numbers.

#How every article is written

• People are described as arrested, charged, accused or under investigation, never as guilty unless a conviction is reported.
• Claims are attributed: “police said”, “according to the council”.
• Minors, victims of sexual offences and private individuals aren't identified beyond what the official source itself discloses.

These are rules the writer follows, and drafts are written with AI, so an editor should still check every sensitive story against the source.