UNPRESS Community Standards
Purpose
UNPRESS' purpose is to share news and information stories that matter in a way that allows:
People to communicate the realities they live, or that others are living on a daily basis
Communities to own and control their own narratives, rather than having them imposed on them externally
Civil discussion and rational discourse
Violence, threats, intimidation, and ad hominem attacks discourage people from creating and sharing the stories that matter to them, and from engaging in discussion about issues that matter.
To serve this purpose, then UNPRESS Community Standards outline what is and is not allowed on UNPRESS. This document is oriented towards the general user community, specifically towards user interactions, discussions, and messages on the site, as well as external content that is posted by viewers such as links to external articles, and videos that are shared for the purpose of discussion.
This document is meant to complement our Editorial Standards that apply specifically to creators regarding the types of content they can produce and their conduct while creating said content.
Introduction
UNPRESS is a place to find, share and discuss news and information that affects our lives and communities.
At UNPRESS, we know how important it is for the UNPRESS platform to be a space where everyone feels empowered to share and discuss the stories and topics that affect their lives. One challenge with social media platforms is that they can quickly devolve into a toxic environment where people become afraid to voice their perspectives and opinions. Knowing this, we have worked hard to build a platform that rewards positive interactions and elevates marginalized voices, while discouraging abuse, but technology can’t solve everything, that’s why we need your help.
These standards are based on input from our diverse group of advisors who have expertise in fields like conflict resolution, technology, and public safety. In order to fulfill our mission to provide a space where different viewpoints can be shared and discussed, in a way that people feel safe doing so, we’ve given much consideration to creating standards that include as broad and diverse a spectrum of beliefs as possible.
Please note that our documentation is not yet translated into other languages. This document should always be considered the primary document for our policies on community standards.
Unbiased Voice
The goal of our Community Standards is to create a space where multiple viewpoints and perspectives can be discussed on a wide array of topics. Some of these topics will be contentious, some may be considered fake news. You may disagree with them or find them objectionable, even somewhat offensive, but we sincerely believe, that by doing our best to include and discuss a broad range of topics we can help people find common ground and expose toxic, even dangerous ideas for what they really are. If we force people and perspectives off of our platform because they are unpalatable, those that hold to them will just go underground to places like 4chan, 8kun, and the dark web where these ideas will grow and fester until they become a danger to more than just a handful of people who may hold unorthodox beliefs.
This means that we may allow content, stories, and discussions, which other platforms may not, as we assume that all content on this platform is newsworthy and in the public interest. This does not mean, however, that anything goes. These standards exist to communicate what we feel are the limits on appropriate, responsible uses of the UNPRESS platform for content, stories, and interactions. They are a result of weighing the value of public interest and education against the risk of harm.
Our commitment to open discourse is embedded in our core values, but as we mentioned above, we are well aware that in the history of social media, the internet, and global news, there are many examples of abuse. As a result, when we curtail expression, we do it in accordance with the following:
Authenticity
It is important that the content people see on UNPRESS is genuine, in that it represents the beliefs and realities that people live with every day. The only way to do this is to start from a place of authenticity, both in content and how the users of the UNPRESS platform represent themselves. That is why we don’t want people using UNPRESS to hide behind anonymity or misrepresent who they are or what they are doing.
Security
Due to our focus on news and information, UNPRESS needs to be a safe and secure environment for users to share stories and interact. We are committed to this goal and will remove any content that could contribute to a risk of physical harm or negatively impacts the security and privacy of others, or is meant to silence others through threats or intimidation.
Likewise, we strive to make the UNPRESS platform as secure as possible. Technical security and user safety are both required to protect the authenticity and privacy of the platform.
Privacy
Without sufficient privacy, people will not feel safe to share their stories or discuss topics that matter. We will protect the privacy of people on our platform in a way that supports and upholds the values in these standards, however, privacy and anonymity are not the same thing. Anonymity is easily abused and people who are anonymous often engage in dialog in a more confrontational manner than they would face to face. In order to support the environment we are trying to create, we will respect and protect user privacy, but we do not guarantee that you can use the full platform anonymously. There will be exceptions to this stance on anonymity when it creates a risk to user security. This will become more apparent when we roll out user validation functionality.
Respect
We believe that all people deserve to be treated with respect. We can disagree and criticize ideas, concepts, policies, beliefs, and actions, but we expect our users to treat each other with respect and follow the golden rule - treat others as you would like to be treated.
Personal ad-hominem attacks, harassment, and personally degrading comments have no place on the UNPRESS platform. Such behavior only results in a hardening of opinions as those who feel attacked stop listening and become defensive.
Community Standards
The UNPRESS Community Standards apply to all users of UNPRESS and the content they create.
Each section of our Community Standards starts with an Overview that that sets out the goal and motivations of the particular policy followed by specific sections that outline what is a violation of the standards and what is not a violation.
Learn more about our approach to enforcement, including potential consequences for violating these rules or attempting to circumvent enforcement, as well as how to appeal.
Rules at a glance | Details |
SecurityViolence, Threats, Terrorism, Intimidation and Incitement: You may not threaten or intimidate other people with violence. You may not promote, advocate for, or incite terrorist activities or violent extremism. Dangerous Individuals and Organizations: We will remove accounts maintained by dangerous individuals, dangerous organizations and perpetrators of terrorist, violent extremist, or mass violent attacks. Any content that advocates for them may also be removed. Coordinating Harm and Promoting Crime: Targeted harassment, or incitement to harassment is prohibited. This includes bullying, doxing, brigading, swatting, harm to animals or property. Suicide or self-harm: You may not promote or encourage suicide or self-harm. Exploitation: There is zero tolerance for the support of, advocation for, facilitation or coordination of human exploitation in any form. Hate speech: You may not threaten, promote violence against, attack or harass other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, skin color, religion or creed, national origin, sex - including gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability or serious disease, veteran status, genetic information, citizenship, refugee status, cast or social class. Sensitive media, including graphic violence and adult content: You may not post media that is excessively gory or share excessively violent or adult content within stories, discussion threads or in profile or header images. Media depicting sexual violence and/or sexual assault is not permitted under any circumstances. Fraud, Illegal or Regulated goods or services: You may not use our service for any unlawful purpose or in furtherance of illegal activities. This includes fraud, selling, buying, or facilitating transactions in illegal goods or services, as well as certain types of regulated goods or services. Privacy ViolationsPrivate information: You may not publish or post other people's private information (such as home phone number and address) without their express authorization and permission. We also prohibit threatening to expose private information or incentivizing others to do so. Non-consensual nudity: You may not post or share intimate photos or videos of someone that were produced or distributed without their consent. Authenticity Platform manipulation and spam: You may not use UNPRESS’s services in a manner intended to artificially amplify or suppress information or engage in behavior that manipulates or disrupts people’s experience on UNPRESS. Misinformation: You may not use UNPRESS’s services to spread information that decidedly increases the risk of physical harm to others or for the purpose of manipulating or interfering in elections or other civic processes. This includes posting or sharing content that may suppress participation or mislead people about when, where, or how to participate in a civic process. Misleading and Deceptive Identities: You may not impersonate individuals, groups, or organizations to mislead, confuse, or deceive others, nor use a fake identity in a manner that disrupts the experience of others on UNPRESS. Synthetic and manipulated media: You may not deceptively share synthetic or manipulated media that are likely to cause harm. In addition, we may label stories containing synthetic and manipulated media to help people understand their authenticity and to provide additional context. Copyright and trademark: You may not violate others’ intellectual property rights, including copyright and trademark. | Violence, Threats, Terrorism, Intimidation and Incitement Dangerous Individuals and Organizations Coordinating Harm and Promoting Crime Adult Nudity and Sexual Activity Fraud, Illegal or Regulated Goods or Services PrivacyIntegrity and AuthenticityPlatform Manipulation and Spam Misleading and deceptive identities Intellectual PropertyThird-Party AdvertisingYou may not submit, post, or display any video content on or through our services that includes third-party advertising, such as pre-roll video ads or sponsorship graphics, without our prior consent. |