Editorial standards
What we check before publishing, and what we do when we get something wrong.
Accuracy comes before the deadline
A shipped factual error is the worst outcome available to a publication like this one — worse than a late issue, and worse than a missed week. Where those two are in tension, accuracy wins. An issue that cannot be verified in time is held back rather than published.
Every figure and date is checked
Before an issue can be published it passes a set of automated checks that run against the copy itself:
- Market figures are compared against licensed price data, and a figure that disagrees is corrected or the issue does not go out.
- Every date is validated arithmetically — a weekday that does not match its date, a market close dated to a weekend, or an economic release placed on a Saturday will stop an issue.
- Index levels for UK and European markets are cross-checked against a second source and flagged where they disagree.
- Claims are verified against independent sources, and anything that survives unresolved blocks publication rather than being quietly published.
These checks are deliberately capable of stopping an issue. They have done so, and we would rather they did.
Nothing is sent automatically
No issue reaches a reader without a person reading it and approving it first. There is no path by which an unreviewed issue can be delivered.
Independence
The Research Brief is funded entirely by its readers. There is no advertising, no sponsored content, no affiliate link and no commercial relationship with any company or institution we write about. Nobody outside the publication sees an issue before it is published, and nobody has ever been given the opportunity to review or influence coverage of themselves.
Corrections
When we get something wrong we correct it in the next issue, in the open, and we say what was wrong rather than quietly changing the archive. Substantive errors are corrected on the published version too, with a note recording what changed and when.
If you think something is wrong, write to hello@theresearchbrief.co.uk. Corrections from readers are welcome and are acted on.
What this publication is not
The Research Brief is editorial commentary and general information only. It does not constitute investment advice, nor a personal recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument. Capital is at risk and past performance is not a guide to future performance. You should seek advice from an independent, regulated financial adviser before making any investment decisions. This publication is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The Editor’s View takes positions, and named companies appear in the analysis. Both are editorial judgement offered to a general readership — not advice, and not a recommendation to act. Read it as you would a newspaper column, and do your own work before committing money.