‘We expect that you will act in the best interests of Thomson Reuters and avoid conflicts of interest by making reasoned and impartial decisions’ – Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, Reuters
Reuters would not be Reuters without freedom from bias. We are a “stateless” news service that welcomes diversity into our newsrooms but asks all staff to park their nationality and politics at the door. This neutrality is a hallmark of our news brand and allows us to work on all sides of an issue, conflict or dispute without any agenda other than accurate, fair reporting.
Take no side, tell all sides
As Reuters journalists, we never identify with any side in an issue, a conflict or a dispute. Our text and visual stories need to reflect all sides, not just one. This leads to better journalism because it requires us to stop at each stage of newsgathering and ask ourselves “What do I know?” and “What do I need to know?”
The 10 Absolutes of Reuters Journalism
- Always hold accuracy sacrosanct
- Always correct an error openly
- Always strive for balance and freedom from bias
- Always reveal a conflict of interest to a manager
- Always respect privileged information
- Always protect their sources from the authorities
- Always guard against putting their opinion in a news story
- Never fabricate or plagiarise
- Never alter a still or moving image beyond the requirements of normal image enhancement
- Never pay for a story and never accept a bribe
Source: Reuters Handbook for Journalism Freedom from Bias and Standards and Values
The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
The Trust Principles are:
- That Thomson Reuters shall at no time pass into the hands of any one interest, group or faction;
- That the integrity, independence and freedom from bias of Thomson Reuters shall at all times be fully preserved;
- That Thomson Reuters shall supply unbiased and reliable news services to newspapers, news agencies, broadcasters and other media subscribers and to businesses governments, institutions, individuals and others with whom Thomson Reuters has or may have contracts;
- That Thomson Reuters shall pay due regard to the many interests which it serves in addition to those of the media; and
- That no effort shall be spared to expand, develop and adapt the news and other services and products so as to maintain its leading position in the international news and information business.
Source: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
On the Fence 