Our Policies

Introduction

As student journalists, we believe in the freedoms of the press and expression guaranteed in the First Amendment of the Constitution.  It is our responsibility to uphold these freedoms in a fair and decent way; since we have been granted these freedoms, we also have a responsibility to produce work that is consistently at a high standard.  

As students in a high school classroom, we believe it is our responsibility to put together content that allows us to learn about ourselves, to develop personal and professional relationships with those around us, and to learn about journalism in a happy and safe work environment.

Mission Statement

The Talisman is a publication of the student body and therefore has a responsibility to reflect student, school, and community affairs.  It will strive to inform, entertain, and inspire its readers in a broad, objective, and accurate manner.

The Talisman also provides an open forum for the opinions of the Delaware Hayes High School student body and wider community.  The purpose of the forum is to encourage the exchange of ideas and opinions on issues of importance and significance to the readers.

The Mission Statement of The Talisman, last updated in July 2022, is the following: The Talisman news organization exists to inform the Hayes community about relevant issues and topics while promoting an environment where students can feel included as they engage through a variety of platforms.

Open Forum & Prior Review

The Talisman has been designated as an open forum for student expression by the Delaware City Schools Board of Education.  As such, student staff members are responsible for the final decisions regarding all newspaper content; therefore, material may not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of Delaware school officials.  It will not be reviewed or restrained by school officials prior to publication or distribution.

Coverage

The Talisman will not print material, opinionated or otherwise, which is libelous, irresponsible, advocates an illegal activity, invades an individual’s rights to privacy or which is deemed in poor taste by the Editor-In-Chief and/or Editorial Board under the guidance of the adviser.

The staff will strive to give fair & balanced coverage of each issue about which they write, as well as of the school community in general.  They respect the dignity, privacy, confidentiality, rights and well-being of sources.  They do not ridicule, humiliate or embarrass others through the news media.  They strive to maintain a professional distance in writing stories by covering all sides of complicated issues, talking to numerous relevant sources and avoiding activities that could compromise their credibility.

The Talisman is an open forum for Hayes High School and its community.  The opinions expressed in this newspaper are those of student journalists, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of any school governing body, including the newspaper Adviser, the school administration, the Board of Education, or the faculty.  Editorials appearing in The Talisman without a byline represent a consensus of the Editorial Board.  Bylined opinion pieces are the opinions of the stated authors.

Grievances & Corrections

When a complaint is received from a reader or source, the editors will discuss the complaint with the reporter involved.  If the editors are not satisfied that the reporter accurately stated the facts or accurately quoted the source, the editors may order a correction.  All complaints should be referred to the Editor-in-Chief, who will determine the method of handling the problem, with guidance from the Adviser if necessary.

The Talisman will never knowingly publish inaccuracies.  In the case that The Talisman reporters inaccurately represent the truth in an article, a correction will be published in a timely manner. For articles published to the website, corrections may be made directly to the original story.  Corrected stories will include an editor’s note to reflect the change from a previous version.

If an individual outside of the staff calls into question something that is published, they should never be guaranteed a correction will run.  All corrections must be approved by the Editor-in-Chief.

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Story Removal/Deletion

Once a story has been posted on online platforms, it may not be removed or deleted. An exception may be made in the case of a compelling journalistic reason, such as a violation of standard journalistic ethics (for example, the story is found to be libelous, slanderous, or may cause harm). Factual errors are not cause for deletion of a story, but will compel the staff to make corrections.

Attribution & Confidential Sources

Quotes will be reported accurately and in the context in which they were made. All quotes will be attributed to a source.  Source confidentiality is only granted if there is a real danger of physical, emotional, or financial harm to the source should the source reveal his or her name.  Whenever possible, information given by a confidential source has been confirmed by at least one other credible source. 

Naming Individuals

The Talisman believes, in accordance with the Student Press Law Center, that a “high school-aged student with no relevant disqualifying issues has the legal capacity to consent to how they are identified without needing parental consent.”  As such, Talisman reporters will follow AP practice of referring to individuals using the name and pronouns by which that individual now identifies. Individuals mentioned in Talisman stories have full control at the time of publication over the names and pronouns by which they are referred, and the Talisman chooses to respect those decisions.

SPJ Code of Ethics

Staff members are responsible for acting professionally at all times.  Staff are also required to uphold all tenets of the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics, which can be found online at http://www.spj.org/pdf/ethicscode.pdf.