How we source

Trust is the only thing a publication actually owns, and it’s the easiest thing to lose. So we’d rather over-explain how we work than ask you to take us on faith. This is the standard every Context Collapse story is held to — and the receipt you can wave at us if we ever fall short of it.

Primary sources first

Wherever we can, we go to the original — the treaty text, the government report, the dataset, the on-the-record statement — instead of summarizing someone else’s summary. When we rely on other reporting, we cite the outlet by name and link straight to it, so you can check our read against theirs. We prefer sources that are themselves transparent about their sources.

Reporting and opinion are never blurred

Three of our sections — The Map (geopolitics), The Receipts (history and context), and The Machine (how power works) — are reporting and analysis: we keep our personal opinions out and stick to what the evidence supports. Hot Takes is different by design: it’s clearly labeled argument, and we tell you up front that you’re reading a point of view, often presenting the strongest case against it too. You will always know which one you’re getting.

You should never have to guess whether you’re reading the facts or our opinion. We label it, every time.

Every claim has a receipt

If a sentence makes a factual claim — a number, a date, a quote, an event — there’s a source behind it, and you can find it. Most of our pieces end with a Receipts box listing exactly where the key facts came from, with live links. Statistics get a date attached, because a true number from three years ago can be a false impression today. If we ever state something we can’t source, treat that as a bug and tell us.

Written and checked by humans

We use research tools the way every newsroom now does, but a human reports, writes, edits, and verifies every piece before it goes live. We do not publish machine-generated text dressed up as reporting, and we don’t invent quotes, sources, or statistics. A name on a story means a person stands behind it.

When we get it wrong

We will make mistakes — everyone who publishes does. What matters is what happens next. When we get something wrong, we fix it, we flag that we changed it, and we date the correction so the record is honest. Spotted an error, a broken link, or a claim that doesn’t hold up? Tell us and we’ll act on it.

Flag a correction: [email protected]