Publisher Services
Overview
News sources that appear on the Media Bias Chart are placed based on our standard rating, which we have undertaken of our own accord, at our own expense, and without any relationship with the news source or its publisher. Our standard rating comprises a minimum representative sample of online articles or program episodes that we select based on our sampling methodology
We offer both free services and select paid services to publishers who are interested in using Ad Fontes ratings for editorial and business purposes. We can help publishers improve their reliability and reduce their bias through ongoing monitoring, and improve their value proposition and potential revenue to advertisers and audiences by demonstrating their high quality.
Complimentary Services
Paid Services
- Use of the Ad Fontes Media “Certified Reliable News Source” badge in promotional materials
- Ingestion of publisher content via RSS feed or similar to ensure Ad Fontes is scoring all content to surface high-quality news in advertising platforms to maximize ad revenue
- Ad Fontes Data Platform, which provides Professional Access to our data on all news sources, including your own and competitive ones
- Content Audits, which include:
- Consistent high-sample audits and re-rates of corrections
- Quarterly feedback with notes
- All Ad Fontes Media human and AI rated article scores of your own content delivered to you in substantially real-time for your own editorial and business use cases
- Newsroom Methodology Training
Services Available and Requirements
Based on Existing Source Reliability Scores
Starting Reliability Score of 36 and above: News organizations already rated at the top of the media landscape for reliable information and who maintain a rating of 36 or above, AND less than +/-12 for bias, are eligible for the following services:
- Use of the Ad Fontes Media “Certified Reliable News Source” badge in promotional materials (free)
- Ingestion of publisher content via RSS feed or similar to ensure Ad Fontes is scoring all content to surface high-quality news in advertising platforms to maximize ad revenue (free)
- Content Audits (paid)
- Consistent high-sample audits and re-rates of corrections (paid)
- Quarterly feedback with notes (paid)
- All Ad Fontes Media human and AI rated article scores of your own content delivered to you in substantially real-time for your own editorial and business use cases (paid)
Starting Reliability Score of 35 and below: News organizations with a reliability rating of 35 and below can receive the following benefits through our auditing service, but will only become eligible for the use of the Ad Fontes media “Certified Reliable News Source” badge 36 if, during the course of the service, the publisher’s score improves to over 36.
- Ingestion of publisher content via RSS feed or similar to ensure Ad Fontes is scoring all content to surface high-quality news in advertising platforms to maximize ad revenue (free)
- Content Audits (paid)
- Consistent high-sample audits and re-rates of corrections (paid)
- Quarterly feedback with notes (paid)
- All Ad Fontes Media human and AI rated article scores of your own content delivered to you in substantially real-time for your own editorial and business use cases (paid)
Starting Reliability Score of 32 and below: To use any of Ad Fontes Media’s free or paid services, publishers with starting reliability scores below 32 must meet the following requirements:
- For the duration of the audit, sources with a reliability rating of 32 and below will be required to add a submission form on their website to allow members of the public to request scoring of articles published prior to engaging with Ad Fontes for an audit.
- Ad Fontes will rate all publicly submitted articles. If such articles score below 24 for reliability, the publisher may choose to revise, correct, or retract the article, and if it does, Ad Fontes will re-rate the article in view of the correction.
- The news source will be required to publish an editorial policy update indicating that they began an audit with Ad Fontes Media to demonstrate a commitment to enhancing their reliability as a news organization.
- Ad Fontes Media will manually rate a sample of a publisher’s content that, in Ad Fontes Media’s own discretion, constitutes a representative sample during an audit period of at least one year. Publishers would become ineligible for AFM audits if after one year their overall reliability score does not improve to above 36.
Our commitment to independence and ethics: Ad Fontes Media maintains the highest standards of fairness and objectivity in rating publishers, especially since we provide audits as a paid service to publishers. Our analysts will rate all content exactly where they believe it should be rated according to our methodology, no matter whether its publisher is a customer or not. Analysts are actively trained that it is important to be neither lenient nor harsh with any particular publisher. We serve other customers besides publishers who rely on our ratings to be as accurate as possible – namely, news consumers and news advertisers. Further, publishers who are our customers themselves benefit most when our ratings are as accurate as possible. To understand how we maintain these standards and mitigate potential conflicts of interest, please see our Stakeholders Statement.
Ad Fontes Certified Reliable News Badge
News sources scoring 36 and higher for reliability and less than +/- 12 for bias are eligible to display this Ad Fontes Media Certified Reliable News Source Badge for free, subject to our terms and conditions.
To receive a Badge brand kit with usage details, please fill out this form.
Article-level Reliability and Bias Data for Publishers
Our human + AI article ratings are now available for publishers, advertisers and media stakeholders. This AI technology enables us to more swiftly and accurately rate media content in a landscape where information is generated at an unprecedented speed and scale.
Publishers can use our article ratings for a variety of editorial and business use cases, including inserting our rating data into ad tech stacks.
To learn more about our human/AI Article Quality Measurement product, contact our sales team.
Newsroom Methodology Training
Great publications always seek to improve the levels of trust that exist between them and the audiences they serve. For editors and journalists, that means striving for the highest standards when it comes to increasing reliability and mitigating bias.
We offer newsroom training sessions on our Ad Fontes Media Content Analysis Methodology, which teaches editors, reporters, writers, and staff what practices increase reliabilty scores and decreases bias scores within our framework.
Our half-day sessions thoroughly cover best practices that, when implemented, have the effect of increasing trust with news consumers. For more information, email us at info@adfontesmedia.com
Receive Ad Fontes Certification for Quality Journalism
The Ad Fontes Certification™ includes:
- Licensed use of the Ad Fontes Certified™ badge for 12 months on publisher’s website, print publications, and marketing materials.
- Large-sample content ratings audit with internal reporting for your organization
- Four appearances on our monthly static charts within the 12 months after certification.
All stakeholders in Ad Fontes Media have a right to expect that we maintain the highest standards of fairness and objectivity in rating publishers, especially since we provide these certifications and audits as a paid service to publishers. To understand how we maintain these standards and mitigate potential conflicts of interest, please see our Stakeholders Statement.
We also offer individual content audits without a certification badge. Click here for more information.
FAQ's
Frequently Asked Questions
Over an 2-4 week period, we will verify your reliability score by conducting ratings of a larger sample of your content based on your publication size, and you’ll be able to use your high-reliabilty rating for commercial purposes right away. Each quarter, we’ll review a new sample and provide you with updated ratings data.
- (More content might be rated as part of our standard operations)
- You will no longer be able to use the badge, but you’ll be given a detailed report on why the score dropped.
A. No, that is a separate product. Find out more here.
