Editorial Standards

Explainer journalism lives or dies on trust, so here — in public, in writing — is the rulebook every BAK News article is held to. If you ever catch us breaking it, tell us; the corrections policy below is not decorative.

1. Primary sources or it doesn't run

Every factual claim in a BAK News explainer traces to a primary source: government data (GAO, CBO, Federal Reserve, BLS, Census, USDA, CMS, EAC, DOL, and peers), statutes and court opinions, agency rulemakings, or — where a topic requires it — named, methodologically transparent research institutions. Each article carries a "Primary Sources" list of the documents actually used. We verify statistics against the publishing institution while writing, and we state the data's year in the text ("as of 2026," "per the 2024 survey") so readers can judge freshness for themselves. We do not launder claims through aggregators, and we don't cite "reports say."

2. Neutrality on contested questions

BAK News explains mechanisms; it does not advocate. On contested policy questions — housing, monetary policy, election law, healthcare financing, and the rest — our obligation is to present the mechanics accurately and to characterize the main competing perspectives fairly, in terms their own proponents would recognize. We don't endorse parties, candidates, or policy positions; we don't publish predictions; and we don't use outrage framing to dress opinion as analysis. Where the evidence itself is unsettled, we say so plainly rather than manufacturing a verdict.

3. Built to stay true

We write evergreen: articles are framed around mechanisms, history, and long-run data rather than this week's numbers, and are intended to remain accurate at least twelve months after publication. Each article displays its published date and a "last updated" date, which we refresh when facts are re-verified or figures updated. When a system we've covered changes materially, we update the article rather than leaving a stale version standing.

4. Corrections policy

When we get something wrong, we fix it visibly. Substantive errors — a wrong number, a mischaracterized mechanism, an outdated claim presented as current — are corrected in the article promptly, and the "last updated" date is refreshed. To report an error, email hello@baknews.com with the article URL, the claim at issue, and (ideally) a link to a primary source. We review every correction report and respond to good-faith ones.

5. Original graphics only

Every chart and diagram on BAK News is original, built by us from the sourced data, with the source credited beneath the graphic. We do not use stock photos or wire-service images. All graphics carry descriptive alt text.

6. Authorship and independence

Every article carries a real byline — Jordan Pike — accountable for its contents. We claim no credentials we don't have; our authority is the paper trail. No article's content is influenced by advertisers, and no coverage is sponsored. If that ever changes in any respect, the affected content will be clearly labeled.

7. What we don't publish

No breaking news, no hot takes, no celebrity coverage, no predictions, no uncited statistics, no AI-era filler patterns dressed as insight. If an article wouldn't help a curious reader understand a system better a year from now, it doesn't belong here.