Editorial standards
What we require of every article we publish, and what we will not do.
Sourcing
Every factual claim in a Health Newspapers article is bound to a source listed at the bottom of that article. A claim we cannot source is cut rather than softened. We prefer primary sources — the trial, the agency notice, the journal paper — over coverage of them, and we link to the primary document wherever one exists.
Every number, dose, date, and percentage we publish must appear in the source we cite for it. This is checked mechanically before publication, not by eye. Where that check turns up an error in the source itself, we record it on our source notes page rather than quietly choosing a figure.
What we will not do
We do not invent people. We do not publish a quote, a name, a title, or an affiliation that does not appear in a source. We do not create fictional authors, and we do not claim medical review that did not happen.
We do not publish articles that exist only to rank in search. If a piece tells a reader nothing they could not get more easily elsewhere, it does not run.
Bylines
Articles carry the byline of Mac Giles, our editor, who holds editorial responsibility for everything published here. Reporting is drafted with AI assistance from primary sources; the byline records who is answerable for a piece, not who typed it. We do not invent writers and we do not attach fabricated human names to individual articles. Where a credentialed reviewer has genuinely reviewed an article, that person is named. Where none has, we make no review claim at all.
Our archive
Health Newspapers launched in August 2026. Articles dated before then were written after that launch, as a founding archive: each one reports a real event from the month it is dated, written from the sources available at that date, and carries the date of the events it describes rather than the date the file was created. We think a dated archive is the honest way to present coverage of things that happened in the past — but a reader deserves to know it was assembled rather than published day by day, so we say so here.
Nothing in the archive cites a source published after that article’s date. That rule is enforced mechanically, not by eye.
Human editorial responsibility
Routine coverage is published automatically once it passes our factuality checks. Any article touching drug safety or dosing, an active outbreak, a named living individual, or pending regulation carries a raised risk tier that marks it for editorial review. Editorial responsibility for what appears here rests with Mac Giles.
Uncertainty
We state limits plainly. A single trial is described as a single trial. An observational finding is not described as a cause. Work in animals is identified as work in animals. We regard honest hedging as a credibility asset rather than a weakness.
Not medical advice
Health Newspapers publishes journalism about health research, policy, and practice. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment recommendations, and nothing here should be used as a substitute for a clinician who knows your case.
Corrections
We correct errors openly and keep a public record of every correction. See our corrections page.