Freelance Ethics

One of the biggest dangers of being a freelancer is that you're on your own for ethics. Without an editor to work closely with, freelancers' articles may not be properly vetted. Furthermore, without a stable mentor, freelancers don't have an opportunity to get schooled in the basics or in the policies of particular outlets.

With that in mind, it's imperative to research general guidelines for responsible writing. It's also a great idea to ask outlets for copies of their guidelines when articles are accepted.

One set of guidelines that an editor mentor sent to me contained many basics of stringer ethics. Most of them are pretty obvious--fact check, report on an mistakes uncovered after print--but some methods are not as obvious. The best hint I gleaned from the guidelines discussed how to properly fact check stories with sources:

"Some sources may ask to see a copy of the story or column before it’s printed. The best way to handle this request is to read facts and quotes back to the subject. NEVER e-mail someone a copy of a story you’re written before it’s published. E-mails can be posted immediately on-line and could be constituted as a published story and expose the paper to potential legal action if the story contains libelous material."

That is, it's best to check the facts and quotes directly with the subject, rather than to send along the entire story, which can be tempting since it's the easiest way to do it. I, however, I had never thought of this problem before. Great advice to follow.