Ethics and Review Policy
News, Reportage and Information
Here at the Lonely Outlet, we cover news and general reporting a bit differently to most other places. While others are content with posting a simple press release, or bare-bones information slapped onto a page, we write our own stylised, “subjective” posts (fancy way of saying that we include opinions, I suppose). We still always strive to be as factually correct as possible, and maintain some level of objectivity, but for us, our posts need to be unique and mostly informal. Conversational, even.
You can go to just about any other outlet for the more generic, purely objective posts. Ours have personality! At the same time, we will never let our own personal opinions tarnish a simple announcement, or piece of news. It is not our intention to dissuade or mislead readers. We are simply injecting some personal anecdotes, commentary and general fun into what would otherwise be a relatively dry piece that you could read anywhere. Our posts are as much about entertainment and storytelling, as they are reporting.
If we ever cover something and more actively voice our opinions, we will usually include terms like “personally”, or “it is my opinion”. We are always aware that people may have differing opinions to ours, and we treat them with respect. We do not dismiss, or ignore them and in fact, love to hear what people think in our comments (or via email).
Ultimately, the purpose of our reportage is not to be the most objective, or fact filled in the industry. Our whole enterprise has been built up from sharing deeply personal opinions about things and this extends to everything that we do, including basic news.
Transparency, Plagiarism and Sources
We have always believed that being honest and upfront with you, the reader, is one of the most important things that we can do as a pop-culture outlet. We want to be as transparent as possible and will never keep things from you. If we have any sort of relationship, even small, with a developer, director, writer, etc. we will always disclose it. If we personally know, or have dealt with someone before, we likely won’t even report on that specific thing, due to potential conflicts of interest. If we ever back a Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Patreon or other crowdfunded project we will also naturally mention this. As a general rule, we never post sponsored content (other than projects/products from our own writers – e.g. if Evelyn Wane has a new book coming out).
We will also never, ever plagiarise content from others. You will not find simple copy and pasted material here! If we ever do use something from another source (generally just information, or perhaps a graphic, not whole pieces), we always credit them appropriately.
Reviews, Features and Articles
Unless otherwise stated, all materials that have been, or will be reviewed have been obtained legally by the Lonely Outlet, or personally by the corresponding staff member. This includes purchasing, streaming, renting and/or borrowing.
If something is provided by a company for the sole purpose of reviewing, we will disclose as such. Receiving review copies will never alter or affect our opinions or views.
At this time, we do not use or include “review scores”.
The topic of features and articles are generally chosen by the Lonely Outlet staff. They are not bought advertisements. That’s not to say that a company or individual can’t contact us about writing a piece on their work. As with reviews, we will always remain unbiased and only write about something if we feel that it is relevant and/or interesting to our readers. We will never accept pay or other compensation for writing about a specific company or individual.
Promotional Materials, Physical Items and Gifts
On occasion, we may receive items from companies or individuals. If we feel that these items are noteworthy or relevant to our readers, we will report on them. For example, if we receive a “collectors edition”, we may create an unboxing video, article or review of the contents. If we do not think that the items are suitable, or have no intention of covering them, we will either not accept them, or alternatively, provide them in a giveaway/contest.
Abiding by the previous paragraph, we generally do accept press kits. However, we generally do not accept “gifts” of any form (items not intended to advertise/promote a title, or for review purposes), unless we feel that it will serve some purpose directly to our readers.
We do not accept travel or accommodation from companies or individuals. If we cover an event sponsored or run by a company, we will disclose it.
As with reviews, any physical items covered by our site are, unless otherwise stated, purchased or obtain through legal means by our staff. If we ever do receive items from companies/individuals, we again, will mention it.
We do accept items from readers with the sole purpose of review. Unfortunately, at this time, items cannot be returned.