Editorial Policy
The Daily Iowan, which has been serving the University of Iowa, Johnson County, and state of Iowa communities for over 150 years, is committed to fair and accurate coverage of events and issues concerning these areas. In an ever-changing media landscape, the DI realizes that an often contentious political climate – paired with the widespread dissemination of news – can cause contentious discussions over some stories.
Although these discussions are essential to democracy – and reiterate the importance of the freedom of expression – the DI takes great lengths to ensure that our social media presence is free of discriminatory remarks, and inaccurate representations of the communities we ardently serve.
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Social Media Policy
Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram allow the DI to showcase content, inform the community, and engage with our audience. These platforms also allow writers, editors, and the community as a whole to comment, applaud, and even take grievance with the stories we cover.
In addition to the DI’s official accounts, staff members also share their own work on personal accounts — we actively encourage staffers sharing their own work, but it is important to note that we do not endorse the comments made by staffers on their pages.
Commenting
DI readers are more than welcome to leave their thoughts on the wide array of content we publish. These comments, however, are read by our editors and digital team to ensure that the “comments section” is free of discriminatory remarks and rhetoric, profanity, and misinformation. Additionally, it has become customary for fake accounts to post comments on news platforms’ websites. For these reasons, the DI purses through comments and deletes unnecessary posts on a discretionary basis. If you believe your comment has been deleted inappropriately, reach out to Executive Editor Jami Martin-Trainor.
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Editorials reflect the majority opinion of the DI Editorial Board and not the opinion of the Publisher, Student Publications Inc., or the University of Iowa.
Opinions, commentaries, columns, and editorial cartoons reflect the opinions of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Editorial Board, The Daily Iowan, or other organizations in which the author may be involved.
Letters to the editor may be sent via email to Executive Editor Jami Martin-Trainor. Each letter must be signed and include an address and phone number for verification. Letters should not exceed 300 words and may be edited for clarity, length, style, and space limitations, including headlines. The DI will only publish one letter per author per month. Letters will be chosen for publication by the editors according to space considerations. No advertisements or mass mailings, please.
Guest opinions that exceed 300 words in length must be arranged with the Opinions editor at least three days prior to the desired date of publication. Guest opinions are selected in accordance with length, subject relevance, and space considerations. Guest opinions may be edited for length, clarity, style, and space limitations.