Code of Ethics

Introduction

The fundamental purpose of journalism at Nepal News is to ensure that the public knows what is happening, understands the causes and context of events, and can form their own informed opinions. The most valuable asset of a journalist is public trust—earned through integrity, fairness, and adherence to the highest professional standards, and maintained through constant accountability.

For journalism to serve its vital role in Nepali society, it must submit itself to rigorous scrutiny. Codifying ethical standards is therefore essential to uphold credibility and maintain public confidence.

As Nepal’s first digital news portal, Nepal News is committed to transparency, accuracy, and editorial independence in every aspect of its reporting. This Code of Ethics has been voluntarily established to guide our editorial team and reflects our firm commitment to responsible digital journalism in Nepal.

In line with Constitutionally & universally guaranteed freedoms, it ensures that all content is carefully reviewed, scrutinized, and held to the highest standards of accuracy, fairness, and integrity.

The purpose of this Code is to define the principles, ethics, and practices that uphold the credibility of Nepal’s pioneering digital news platform while safeguarding the full independence of its editorial operations.

At Nepal News, our guidelines protect the trust of our readers by ensuring accuracy, editorial independence, and integrity in all our journalism; helping staff avoid conflicts of interest or even the appearance of one; and ensuring that our work serves the public interest above all.

While these guidelines set broad principles, no Code can anticipate every situation. Journalists frequently face complex decisions, such as balancing an individual’s privacy with the public’s right to know, or cultivating sources while maintaining independence. Exercising sound judgment guided by these principles is essential.

Nepal News believes that for journalism to fulfill its vital role in Nepalese society, it must hold itself to the highest standards of scrutiny and accountability. Codifying these ethics is therefore not only a responsibility but a pledge to the citizens of Nepal we are committed to serving.

A Journalist at Nepal News Shall:

• Uphold the highest professional and ethical standards, ensuring all content is fair, unbiased, and accurate.
• Avoid falsification, distortion, selective reporting, or misrepresentation, and promptly correct inaccuracies.
• Defend the freedom of the press and other media in the collection of information and expression of opinion.
• Strive to eliminate distortion, suppression, or manipulation of news.
• Not accept personal favors, bribes, or inducements, and must not allow commercial or political pressures to influence professional duties.
• Not exploit information gained through professional work for private advantage.
• Protect confidential sources, sharing information only with the editor or designated line manager when necessary.
• Mention personal details—age, gender, ethnicity, caste, religion, disability, marital status, sexual orientation—only when directly relevant to the story.
• Avoid creating or publishing material that encourages discrimination, ridicule, prejudice, or hatred.
• Obtain information, photographs, or illustrations through lawful and transparent means; covert methods are permitted only for overriding public interest with editor approval.
• Respect privacy and avoid intruding into private grief or distress, unless public interest clearly outweighs privacy concerns and with editorial approval.
• Exercise ethical caution and fairness when breaking sensitive stories.
• Not glorify perpetrators of violence under any pretext, including honor, religion, or ideology.
• Exercise care when reporting on militants, insurgents, or extremists, balancing public interest with the risk of inadvertently promoting extremist ideas.
• Avoid publishing gory images unless unavoidable and clearly in the public interest.
• Report carefully on sectarian clashes, communal disturbances, ethnic conflict, hostage situations, and similar events, taking care not to escalate tensions or endanger lives.
• Protect vulnerable individuals: do not identify or photograph minors, sexual abuse survivors, or people living with HIV/AIDS without explicit consent. For minors, parental or guardian permission must be obtained after assessing potential implications.
• Do not identify accused persons in sexual assault cases until formally charged by the court.
• Respect copyright and intellectual property; avoid plagiarism in text, images, or multimedia content.
• Avoid gender discrimination in reporting and workplace interactions; reflect equality and refrain from stereotyping in all journalism.
• Follow organizational guidelines regarding social media use.
• Uphold the rule of law, the Constitution, and democratic values, and comply with national and international laws while reporting on domestic or international affairs.
• Maintain strict confidentiality regarding internal discussions, editorial meetings, content planning, unpublished stories, and any internal news-related information; such information shall not be discussed outside the newsroom or shared with unauthorized parties.
• Not rely on AI-generated or automatically created content for reporting, analysis, or commentary, unless the source is explicitly cited. All work must originate from personal investigation, verified sources, and professional judgment.
• Ensure that all digital data, statistics, graphics, photographs, and videos are obtained from reliable, verified sources. Editing must never distort or misrepresent facts.
• Maintain cybersecurity and digital privacy, protecting confidential sources, sensitive information, and digital files using secure and approved platforms.
• Ensure that data journalism, infographics, and analytics are accurate and transparent, avoiding selective presentation or misleading conclusions.
• Exercise responsibility in multimedia reporting: all video, audio, or graphic content must reflect events truthfully. Any edits, animations, or enhancements must be clearly disclosed to the audience.
• Follow organizational guidelines for digital and social media use, maintaining professional conduct and separating personal views from editorial reporting.