The Tri-State Defender has served readers in Memphis for more than 70 years by producing accurate, fact-based and informative stories on issues affecting residents of the city and the Mid-South.

Freelance contributors who write for the Tri-State Defender are expected to adhere to ethical journalistic standards that align with its mission. One such standard applies to the separation of a writer’s personal opinion from the news they report.

We work hard to avoid instances in which personal beliefs, opinions or political viewpoints of writers could lead readers to presume bias in coverage, whether it exists or not.

A freelance contributor who has written for the Tri-State Defender for over four months during my tenure has stated that she was fired from the Tri-State Defender following a personal social media post. This is not true. She has never been an employee of the Tri-State Defender. She could not have been fired from a job she didn’t have.

As a freelancer, the reporter was assigned to write news articles about the Memphis Safe Task Force as well as other topics. The assignment did not include writing columns or opinion pieces, either for TSDmemphis.com or our social media sites.

Every journalist with integrity and an ethical foundation knows that you cannot report facts and then share your personal opinion with the masses on what you’re covering. This erodes public trust in that person’s ability to be fair and impartial in reporting and writing. That is what has happened in this incident.

After informing me that her personal social media post related to the Memphis Safe Task Force had “blown up” and was “going viral,” she asked for advice on how she should proceed. She was told it was her decision to make.

She chose the option of leaning into the publicity her social media post had garnered over her commitment to cover the Memphis Safe Task Force.

Our goal is fairness, transparency and accuracy in all we present to readers, and we will continue along that path. That is what our readers expect and, more importantly, it’s what they deserve.

We thank you for your continued support.

Stephanie R. Jones
Editor
Tri-State Defender