Renew Atlas · Editorial policy
Trust is a workflow, not a disclaimer.
The standards governing Atlas authorship, sourcing, dates, corrections, automation, commercial interest, and fair-housing compliance.
- 01
Authorship must be real
Eric Giovannucci is credited as author only when he materially writes or shapes the analysis and accepts responsibility for the published conclusions. Database-led pages identify Renew Atlas as compiler and Eric as reviewer when that is the accurate role.
- 02
Primary evidence comes first
Time-sensitive quantitative, legal, zoning, tax, permit, and policy claims link to an official or first-party record whenever one exists. Secondary reporting may add context but does not replace the primary record.
- 03
Dates describe different events
Published, modified, data-as-of, and human-reviewed dates are stored and displayed separately. A deployment or automated refresh does not create a new editorial date by itself.
- 04
Commercial interest is disclosed
Renew Atlas is published by a licensed real estate team that may represent parties in Treasure Valley transactions. Research does not guarantee value, approval, rent, financing, or return and does not replace transaction-specific professional review.
- 05
Automation assists; it does not become the author
Software may assist source discovery, extraction, normalization, calculation, drafting, link checks, and quality review. Material public claims require human verification. Eric remains responsible for analysis carrying his byline.
- 06
Reporting labels describe actual work
A page is labeled original reporting only when its publication record identifies the reporting completed, records reviewed, people contacted, interview material retained, and author responsible. A summary of public documents is labeled a document brief, not original reporting.
- 07
Publication requires named human decisions
Automation cannot promote a draft, assign a byline, approve a factual review, change a substantive review date, or close a correction. Publication requires a named factual reviewer and approval of the exact version being released.
- 08
Right of reply is part of factual fairness
When a story makes a material disputed claim about an identifiable person, agency, or organization, Atlas records a reasonable request for response and represents the response accurately. A missed deadline is disclosed when it affects the story.
- 09
Corrections stay visible
Material factual or methodological changes are recorded with the date and nature of the revision. Minor spelling or formatting changes do not create a new substantive update date.
- 10
Fair housing is a publication constraint
Atlas does not rank neighborhoods using protected-class data, steer readers, label places as safe or unsafe, or use coded demographic claims. Aggregate public data is included only for a neutral, legitimate research purpose.
- 11
Uncertainty is part of the result
Estimates, licensed data, internal observations, and property-specific assumptions are labeled differently. Missing evidence is reported as an unresolved question instead of being filled with invented precision.
- 12
Conflicting claims do not publish
When official sources conflict, Atlas identifies the adopted and effective authority before publishing. If the controlling record cannot be established, the claim stays out of the guide.
- 13
The writing should sound like a person
Atlas starts with the decision, uses plain language, and avoids canned search phrases, fake anecdotes, inflated certainty, artificial urgency, and repetitive page formulas. Public Atlas copy does not use em dash characters.
- 14
Usefulness sets the length
Atlas does not publish to meet a word quota, keyword quota, or automated content schedule. A piece is complete when it answers the reader's decision, shows the evidence, explains material limits, and survives a read-aloud edit.
Human publication gate
Automation can test a draft. It cannot approve one.
These checks sit beside the automated source and content audits. Every required human decision must identify the reviewer and the exact version reviewed.
- Gate 01all
The opening states the decision or verified change without a generic preamble.
- Gate 02factual
Every material factual sentence has a claim ID and an exact official locator.
- Gate 03factual
Controlling code is reconciled with later adopted and effective actions.
- Gate 04all
Unknown, conflicting, pending, and property-specific issues remain visibly qualified.
- Gate 05reported
Interviews, records requests, observations, and right-of-reply work have retained records.
- Gate 06published
A named editor has added judgment, removed repetition, and completed a read-aloud pass.
- Gate 07published
The named author materially shaped and approved the exact version being published.
- Gate 08published
The page links to its sources, revision history, and a visible correction path.
A credible research desk makes correction easy.
Send the exact page, claim, and source you believe needs review. Material changes are recorded publicly.