Editorial charter and code of ethics

What we are

AubeActu is a local news outlet devoted to the Aube department and its 431 municipalities. It is free, without subscription and without a paywall. It belongs to no press group, no local authority and no political party. Its funding and governance are published on the Masthead page.

Verification: the two-source rule

A factual claim is published only after verification. A sensitive claim — an accusation against a person, a disputed figure, an administrative decision — requires two independent sources, or one directly consultable primary source. Primary sources include: a published municipal order, minutes of a council meeting, an official statement, an open dataset, a document in our possession, or a first-hand identified witness account.

Every published article carries its list of sources, with links where the source is online. An article with no identifiable source is not published.

What we do not take from others

We reproduce neither the text, nor the standfirst, nor the photographs of another newspaper. When a story breaks elsewhere, we verify it independently, rewrite it in full, and credit the outlet with a link. Information belongs to everyone; the way it is written belongs to whoever wrote it.

The news feeds we subscribe to — municipal bulletins, press releases, event calendars — are a starting point, never a text to copy: the information is checked and rewritten, and its source is cited under the article, with a link to the original. Only official alerts, calendar events released under an open licence and service data appear without rewriting.

Editorial and commercial separation

No advertiser, partner or funder has any say over editorial content. Every paid item carries an unhideable banner stating its nature and the advertiser's name, and is excluded from editors' picks and from the news feed submitted to search engines. The full rules are on the Advertising page.

Crime, justice and the presumption of innocence

A person charged but not convicted is described as a suspect, as being investigated or as a defendant — never as the perpetrator or as guilty. We publish neither their full name, nor their address, nor their employer: initials, age and municipality are enough to inform. Naming an unconvicted person requires a demonstrable public interest, a written justification and the approval of the publication director.

We do not publish the image of a person in handcuffs or restraints before conviction, nor an image of a victim in conditions that seriously undermine their dignity, nor the identity of a victim of sexual assault without their written agreement. These prohibitions are set out in articles 35 ter, 35 quater and 39 quinquies of the French law of 29 July 1881; they are also a matter of decency.

Where a case we covered ends in acquittal, dismissal or discontinuance, we publish that outcome, with the same prominence as the original accusation.

Minors and vulnerable people

No minor is named or identifiably photographed without the written agreement of their legal guardians, and that agreement covers one publication, not all our platforms. A minor involved in judicial proceedings is never identifiable.

Photographs

We publish our own photographs, those of our contributors, those whose rights we have acquired, and those released under a licence that allows it — respecting its conditions, attribution included. A photograph taken in a public place showing an isolated, recognisable individual is published only with their agreement, unless it directly illustrates a news event in which that person is publicly taking part.

Corrections

We do get things wrong. Every correction is flagged at the foot of the article concerned, dated, and states what changed. We never correct silently and we never delete an article's address to make a mistake disappear. The full procedure is on the Corrections page.

Independence and conflicts of interest

A writer does not cover a subject in which they have a personal, family, professional, associative or political interest. Where a connection exists and the subject must still be covered, that connection is disclosed in the article. Elected officials, candidates and heads of organisations covered by the newspaper do not write for it.

We accept no press trips, no gifts and no benefits of significant value. An invitation to an event we are covering is accepted where it is the only way in, and is disclosed in the article.

Election periods

During a campaign, every candidate in a given constituency is offered the same profile format and the same length. No unsolicited op-ed is published. No advertisement bought by a candidate, a list, a party or a local authority of the Aube is accepted during the window covered by article L52-1 of the French electoral code. No result, projection or exit poll is published before the last polling station closes.

Any opinion poll we publish is accompanied by the polling organisation, the commissioning party, the sample size, the fieldwork dates, the method, the margins of error and a reminder of the right to consult the notice filed with the French polling commission.

Your remedies

If an article names you, the right of reply is open to you. If information about you must be corrected, removed or anonymised, the removal request page sets out the procedure. If content seems unlawful to you, use the reporting form.