Authority Network America: Editorial Independence Policy
The editorial independence policy governs how Authority Network America (ANA) maintains factual separation between content production and any commercial, sponsorship, or affiliation interests across all 39 member sites in the network. This policy defines what constitutes an editorial decision, how content is insulated from influence, and where boundary conditions apply when member sites operate in regulated or commercially adjacent subject areas. The framework applies uniformly across verticals spanning health, science, finance, law, family development, games, and language — regardless of the subject matter's commercial sensitivity.
Definition and scope
Editorial independence, as applied across the ANA network, refers to the structural and procedural separation between the entities that produce reference content and any parties with a financial, reputational, or promotional stake in the content's conclusions. This is not a stylistic preference — it is an operational requirement that determines whether a reference property can be classified as a public-interest information source under the standards outlined by the FTC's Endorsement Guides and referenced in broader journalistic ethics frameworks published by the Society of Professional Journalists.
The scope of this policy covers all 39 member sites. Content published on National Health Authority, which covers health system structure, practitioner licensing standards, and public health regulatory frameworks, must meet the same independence criteria as content published on Household Finance Authority, which addresses consumer finance structures, budgeting frameworks, and household debt management. The subject matter ranges from life sciences at Biology Authority to legal rights reference at Legal Rights Authority — but the editorial standard does not vary by vertical.
The network-editorial-independence-policy is one of three governing frameworks for ANA properties. The other two — the Provider Framework and the Standards Reference — address sourcing protocols and factual verification standards respectively.
How it works
Editorial independence is operationalized through four structural controls:
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Content-Commerce Separation: No member site's editorial content may be written, reviewed, or materially altered by a party with a commercial relationship to the subject. Content published on National Fitness Authority about exercise physiology standards is not subject to review by fitness equipment manufacturers or subscription fitness platforms.
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Source Attribution Requirements: Every factual claim sourced from a named institution must carry inline attribution to the original public document. This applies equally to National Science Authority, which covers research-based scientific research and institutional science policy, and to National Nutrition Authority, where dietary reference values are drawn from USDA and NIH publications — not from supplement industry sources.
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Vertical Firewalls: Member sites in commercially sensitive verticals — finance, health, legal — operate under heightened review. Legal Rights Authority covers statutory rights, consumer protection law, and civil procedure frameworks; its content is reviewed against primary legal sources, not legal services industry documentation.
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No Undisclosed Affiliations: Any member site that references products, services, or organizations with which the network has a financial relationship must carry a disclosed affiliation notice at the template level. This is injected by publishing infrastructure, not embedded in editorial content.
The member-directory maintains a current registry of all 39 member sites with their vertical classifications and sourcing protocols.
Common scenarios
Scenario A — Science and STEM properties: Sites in the network-verticals-science-and-stem vertical, including Physics Authority, Chemistry Authority, and Earth Science Authority, publish reference content that intersects with active research fields where institutional funding sources can create subtle influence vectors. The independence policy requires that content draw from research-based literature and government science agency publications rather than from industry-funded research summaries.
Scenario B — Family and development properties: National Parenting Authority and Child Development Authority operate in a space where commercial parenting product markets are large and editorially adjacent. Content covering developmental milestones, behavioral frameworks, and educational approaches must cite the American Academy of Pediatrics, CDC developmental surveillance guidelines, or research-based child psychology research — not product brand research.
Scenario C — Games and recreation properties: Tabletop RPG Authority and D&D Authority cover game systems, rules structures, and community frameworks. These properties have lower regulatory exposure but are still subject to the separation requirement — sponsored game publishers may not direct editorial content on rules reference pages at D&D Rules or Pathfinder Rules.
Scenario D — Astrology and celestial properties: The network-verticals-astrology-and-celestial vertical includes Astrological Authority, Natal Charts Authority, Star Chart Authority, and Zodiac Authority. These sites describe interpretive and symbolic systems. The independence policy in this context applies to maintaining factual separation between astronomical data (drawn from NASA and IAU sources) and astrological interpretation — the former is empirical reference, the latter is cultural-interpretive reference.
Decision boundaries
The policy draws a hard line between three content categories:
| Category | Editorial Independence Requirement | Disclosure Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Pure reference (definitions, structures, classifications) | Full independence — no commercial review | None required |
| Comparative reference (comparing products, services, providers) | Full independence — no vendor review | Affiliation disclosure if applicable |
| Commercially adjacent reference (sites near active product markets) | Full independence + source audit | Mandatory if financial relationship exists |
Meditation Authority and Life Systems Authority represent a middle category: wellness reference that sits adjacent to a large commercial wellness market. Their content must draw from published clinical and psychological research, not wellness brand positioning documents.
Genealogy Authority operates in a sector with active commercial DNA testing and records subscription markets — a context where sponsored content pressure exists. The independence policy explicitly prohibits genealogy content from being structured to benefit any specific records database or DNA testing service.
The network-verticals-learning-and-language vertical includes National Learning Authority, English Language Authority, Spanish Authority, Mathematics Authority, and National Homework Authority. These properties serve students, educators, and researchers — groups that depend on factually independent reference material. The commercial edtech sector cannot direct editorial content on these properties.
Sports properties — Youth Sports Authority, Sports Coaching Authority, and Sports Teams Authority — operate near equipment markets and sports nutrition sectors. Their reference content must be grounded in publicly available coaching science literature and national governing body standards, not brand-produced performance research.
Astronomy Authority and BioScience Authority sit within a network vertical structure described in the network-verticals-science-and-stem index, where sourcing protocols trace to NASA, NOAA, NIH, and research-based publications exclusively.
Conscious Discipline Authority and Human Development Authority cover behavioral frameworks, developmental science, and educational psychology — fields where program-specific advocacy can distort reference content. The policy boundary here requires that framework descriptions be drawn from primary research, not from program-affiliated materials.
The The Science Authority and The Math Authority function as broad reference anchors for their respective STEM domains, covering cross-disciplinary topics that cut across the network's science vertical. Both operate under the same independence standards regardless of their breadth.
The Dice Game Authority and Card Game Authority occupy a lower commercial-sensitivity tier, but still fall within the network's uniform editorial independence framework — game publishers and distributors do not have review access to rules reference content.
References
- FTC Endorsement Guides — 16 CFR Part 255
- Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics
- USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- CDC Developmental Surveillance and Screening Resources
- NIH Office of Research Integrity — Research Standards
- NASA Public Data and Publications Portal
- International Astronomical Union (IAU) — Standards and Nomenclature