Ethics policy.
Last revised Apr 1, 2026
This policy is the companion to our editorial standards. The standards describe how we report. This policy describes the choices we make around money, relationships, and conflicts — the structural questions that determine whether our reporting is trustworthy before a single word is written.
Relationship with Revscale, Inc.
Revscale Media is editorially independent from the commercial operations of its parent company, Revscale, Inc. Reporters do not take assignment from Revscale's sales, product, or customer-success teams. Revscale executives do not pre-review coverage.
When we report on Revscale itself, or on its customers, partners, or competitors, we disclose the relationship prominently in the piece. Where the conflict is severe — for example, a story that would meaningfully affect Revscale's business — we refer the story to an outside contributor, or we do not cover it.
Revenue sources
We accept four kinds of revenue: newsletter subscriptions, sponsorships of specific newsletters or events, advertising, and syndication licensing. All four are kept separate from editorial decisions.
Sponsored content, when it exists, is labeled clearly as "Sponsored" at the top of the piece and is written by the sponsor or a partner agency — never by Revscale Media staff. We do not produce "native" or "branded" content that mimics editorial.
Gifts and hospitality
Reporters do not accept gifts, meals, or travel from sources or subjects of coverage, with narrow exceptions: routine nominal hospitality at industry conferences (coffee, a meal at a table shared with many others), and site-visit logistics where the operator is covering on-site transportation as part of a tour.
We do not accept pre-paid travel to events we are covering. Where attending an event is essential and the only practical way is with sponsored travel, we disclose it at the bottom of the story.
Financial interests
Staff reporters do not own individual stocks in companies they cover, or options on those stocks. Diversified index funds and broad ETFs are permitted. Pre-existing positions (for example, shares inherited or vested before joining) must be disclosed to the editor and either divested within 90 days or moved into a recusal that prevents the reporter from covering that issuer directly.
The same rules apply to immediate family members sharing a household. Non-covering staff (developers, operations) are not subject to these restrictions.
Outside activity
Reporters do not take paid speaking engagements from companies they cover, consulting work inside the franchise industry, or board or advisory positions with operators, vendors, or investors active in our coverage area. Book projects, academic work, and unpaid speaking are permitted with editor approval.
Sources
We protect our sources. When we agree to source protection, we honor it even under legal pressure and even if the source later regrets the decision. We prepare for that in advance: we limit who on our team knows an anonymous source's identity, we do not keep unnecessary records of source communications, and we use end-to-end encrypted channels by default for sensitive material.
We do not pay sources for information or grant story approval in exchange for cooperation. We do not give interview subjects copy approval, though we will read back specific quotations for accuracy when the material is technical and the meaning could be misconstrued.
Corrections and retractions
We correct errors promptly and visibly. Significant corrections are surfaced on the homepage for 24 hours. Retractions (the removal of a claim or story) are rare; when they happen, we explain the reasoning in a standalone note and keep the record of what was originally published.
We do not scrub stories from the archive at the request of subjects. In narrow cases — safety concerns for a source, a legal order, or a factual error so severe that no correction is meaningful — we may update or unpublish a story. When we do, we describe why.
AI use
We use AI tools for specific, auditable tasks: transcript cleanup, summarization of public documents, copy-editing drafts, visualization prototyping. We do not generate reporting, quotes, or analysis with AI and pass them off as our own work. Any story that relies materially on AI-assisted methods (e.g., programmatic analysis of a large corpus) includes an AI-methods note.
Diversity and inclusion
Our reporting is measurably stronger when our staff and sources reflect the operators the industry serves. We track the demographic range of our bylines and featured subjects and work actively to expand both. We welcome feedback on where we're falling short.
Accountability
If you believe a Revscale Media story, reporter, or business decision is inconsistent with this policy, write to ethics@revscalemedia.com. Our editor-in-chief reads every note personally. We respond within 10 business days.
The strength of a publication is measured by what it refuses. If a line in this policy is being stretched, we would rather hear about it than not.