1.  The Hastings Independent Press exists to disseminate information and views to readers in the Hastings area and to promote the community and community spirit.  

2. The newspaper recognises that there will be a wide range of views within the community and it seeks to cover a broad spectrum of those views. 

3. We are a community newspaper and aim to give a voice to the community. We encourage participation from the community at large in the content of the paper. We will seek to have at least one open monthly meeting for anyone who wishes to be involved.

4. We do not subscribe to any particular party political doctrine.

5. We are committed to accuracy in our reporting and will endeavour to avoid publishing misleading or distorted information. We will seek to distinguish between opinion, facts and speculation in all that we publish.

6. If factual inaccuracies are identified we will publish corrections. We will seek to publish replies or rebuttals to articles that are considered misleading.

- Advertisement -

7. We will respect the privacy of members of the public. In the case of a loss of life we will report sensitively and will not intrude into the grief of relatives. In reporting crime, we will generally avoid publishing names of family or friends of accused people or suspects.

8. We are committed to respecting and valuing diversity in our community and all writers must avoid making discriminatory reference to an individual’s race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, physical or mental illness, disability, or to any aspect of a person’s lifestyle which doesn’t impinge upon others. 

9. We are a not-for-profit organisation, all profits will be re-invested back into the newspaper and its social endeavours.

10. We will favour offering advertising space to local, independently run businesses. We will be cautious about accepting advertising revenue from chains which aren’t local, or to businesses which mistreat or underpay their staff, or operate against the interests of the community.