Governing Policies

  • All of our editorial content follows journalism’s best practices, including the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics as follows:

    ● We seek truth and report it in an accurate and fair manner.

    ● We minimize harm by treating sources, subjects, colleagues, and members of the public as human beings deserving of respect.

    ● We act independently and serve the public by avoiding conflicts of interest and disclosing unavoidable conflicts.

    ● We are accountable and transparent by acknowledging mistakes and correcting them promptly and prominently.

    ● We will respect and practice civility with all people we have contact with.

    ● We will maintain professionalism with all sources, both in person and on social media.

    ● When speaking with sources, we will state clearly who we are and what we do, and which parts of a conversation are on-the-record and off-the-record.

    ● If a person or a company is being accused of something, or is being portrayed in a strong negative light, they will be contacted to try and get their viewpoint before publication.

    ● If we make a mistake, we will always be transparent and follow our Corrections Policy.

    ● We will never falsify any part of our news and we will always provide attribution to others if they are the source of our information.

    These policies were compiled with inspiration from a variety of sources including Axios, The Denver Post, Washington Post, and The Salt Lake Tribune. We’re grateful for fellow news organizations who demonstrate what ethical, values driven journalism can be.

  • PERSONAL DISCLOSURE REQUIRED

    All employees and contributors are expected to notify the editor(s) if they are working on a matter involving a personal connection. If it is deemed by the editor(s) to be a potential conflict of interest, the story should be reassigned, or the conflict must be fully disclosed at the time of publication. The same scenario applies to the editor(s) who may have an interest in, or personal connection to, the outcome of a story.

    Areas of conflict potentially include, but are not limited to, writing/editing stories about family or friends, organizations you belong to, schools you attend, a business from which you benefit, a church you attend, etc. If an employee or contributor refers to a legitimate news tip about something in which the employee or contributor has a stake, the nature of the conflict must be disclosed to the editor(s).

  • Throughout the story-production process through our community newsrooms, writers and photographers are given training about fact gathering, the importance of using original sources whenever possible, and about the proper way to cite sources. Employees and contributors must verify the accuracy of information they gather, such as names, positions, factual statements and accounts. The editor(s) have the ultimate responsibility to double check the veracity of facts, stats, statements, and citations before they are published.

    If an employee, contributor, or the editor(s) is concerned that ungrammatical or clumsily worded remarks may expose the person being quoted to embarrassment or ridicule, then they may agree to use another quote from that person conveying the same or a similar point, or they may agree to paraphrase the person’s comments.

  • We are committed to accuracy on all publishing platforms – print, website, email newsletters and social media. We will fix an error promptly and transparently, whether it is in print or online, by making a correction and announcing it as quickly as possible.

    We strive to gather, update and correct information throughout the life of a news story.

    We encourage our readers to email any errors they notice to Managing Editor Rob Ware.

  • It is our policy that plagiarism is an act of stealing the work of others and claiming it as one’s own. Whether it is writing, reporting, photography, or other copyrighted content, it is unacceptable. We instruct our writers to avoid direct and mosaic plagiarism and to cite sources accurately. We require proper attribution of work that is quoted or paraphrased. The copyright of individual articles, photos, and syndicated content also needs to be established.

    Our writers are instructed to follow these guidelines:

    ● Do not turn in someone else's work as your own i.e. direct plagiarism

    ● Do not copy words or phrases from someone else without giving credit. (mosaic)

    ● If you change words, but use someone else’s sentence structure, you need to cite the source.

    ● Put quotations in quotation marks, even if you cite the source.

    ● Be accurate with your citations of others’ work.

    ● Make sure most of the words and ideas in your story are your own.

  • West View Media reserves the right to edit all opinion submissions – commentaries, letters to the editor, narratives, etc. – for libel, slander, clarity, general accuracy, and length.

    Opinion pieces submitted to West View Media are subject to the policies of West View Media. This includes remaining factual, ethical, and rooted in the values of civility that define West View Media’s role in the community.

  • West View Media is committed to fostering, cultivating and preserving a culture of diversity, inclusion, and equity. Diversity, inclusion, and equity are not only important to us as an organization overall, but West View Media aims to incorporate this into our content as much as possible. When researching topics, we will listen with an open mind to as many diverse voices as possible to report with fairness, and will extend opportunities, training, and support for employees and contributors of diverse backgrounds to submit stories and opinion pieces.

  • West View Media is dedicated to transparency and accountability in our financial practices. West View Media is an independent nonprofit organization in good standing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). In addition, West View Media is dedicated to being transparent and accountable with our financial documents. As a media organization we believe that journalism is a public service and as a result, our managing editor has full editorial control on all stories, columns, and photographs published in The West View and on our other platforms.

    We publish the information below in an effort to meet our own high standard for accountability and transparency.

    In furtherance of our goal to promote transparency and accountability in our financial practices, West View Media will:

    List all donors who give more than $5,000 to the organization. West View Media will not accept anonymous gifts over $1,000 unless the board of directors authorizes the gift. No more than 5 percent of annual revenue will be accepted from anonymous sources.

    Publish its annual IRS Form 990 and other public documents on its website and in other appropriate locations such as GuideStar.

    We also welcome the opportunity to provide additional information when appropriate. If you would like additional information about the financial or policies of West View Media, please contact Executive Director Turner C. Bitton / 801-564-3860.

  • West View Media takes pride in our responsible fundraising practices and we adhere to the standards and policies provided by the industry-accepted Donor Bill of Rights. The Donor Bill of Rights was created by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), and the Giving Institute: Leading Consultants to Nonprofits.

    The following policies and procedures are designed with the Donor Bill of Rights and are intended to promote donor-centered philanthropy at HEAL Utah.

    We encourage you to visit the Donor Bill of Rights for additional information.

  • We are grateful for your donation and support of our organization. Donations are normally non-refundable after 30 days. If there has been an error in making your donation or you change your mind about contributing to our organization, please email Executive Director Turner C. Bitton or call 801-564-3860.

    Refunds are returned using the original method of payment. If you made your donation by credit card, your refund will be credited to that same credit card.

  • Ongoing support is important to enabling projects to continue their work, so we encourage donors to continue to contribute to projects over time. If your credit card information changes, or if you must cancel your recurring donation, please notify us immediately.

  • The board of directors and staff solicit current and deferred gifts from individuals, corporations, foundations, and others for purposes that will further and fulfill West View Media’s mission.

    The provisions of this policy shall apply to all gifts received by West View Media. Notwithstanding the foregoing, West View Media reserves the right to revise or revoke this policy at any time, and to make exceptions to the policy in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedures. The policy is such that:

    West View Media will not accept unrestricted anonymous gifts of cash over $1,000 without prior review by the Board of Directors. For donations of $5,000 or more, the identity of the donor must be vetted with respect for the mission and values of West View Media.

    All gifts (or those gifts in excess of an appropriate, board-approved threshold), other than unrestricted gifts of cash, must be reviewed by the Board of Directors prior to acceptance, unless the Board of Directors authorizes certain gifts or categories of gifts to be accepted without its review.

    The Organization may not accept gifts that:

    ● Violate the terms of West View Media’s organizational policies;

    ● Would jeopardize West View Media’s status as an exempt organization under federal or state law;

    ● Are too difficult or expensive to administer;

    ● Are for purposes that do not further West View Media’s objectives;

    ● Are inconsistent with the mission and goals of West View Media; or

    ● Threaten the editorial independence of West View Media.

    All final decisions on the acceptance or refusal of a gift shall be made by the Board of Directors.

    In addition, the following provisions apply:

    GIFT AGREEMENTS
    Where appropriate, West View Media shall enter into a written gift agreement with the donor, specifying the terms of any restricted gift, which may include provisions regarding donor recognition and use of earnings derived from the gift.

    PLEDGE AGREEMENTS
    Acceptance by West View Media of pledges by donors of future support of (including by way of matching gift commitments) shall be contingent upon the execution and fulfillment of a written charitable pledge agreement specifying the terms of the pledge, which may include provisions regarding donor recognition.

    FEES
    West View Media will not accept a gift unless the donor is responsible for the fees of independent legal counsel retained by donor for completing the gift; appraisal fees; environmental audits and title binders (in the case of real property); and all other third-party fees associated with the transfer of the gift to West View Media.

    VALUATION OF GIFTS
    The Organization shall record gifts received at their valuation on the date of gift, except that, when a gift is irrevocable, but is not due until a future date, the gift may be recorded at the time the gift becomes irrevocable in accordance with generally accepted accounting practices (GAAP).

    IRS FILINGS UPON SALE OF GIFTS
    To the extent applicable, West View Media shall file the appropriate IRS form upon the sale or disposition of any charitable deduction property sold within one year of receipt.

    WRITTEN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
    West View Media shall provide acknowledgement of all gifts received and comply with the current IRS requirements in acknowledgement of the gifts.

    CHANGES TO OR DEVIATIONS FROM THE POLICY
    This policy has been reviewed and accepted by the Board of Directors, which has the sole power to change this policy. In addition, the Board of Directors must approve any deviations from this policy.