Editorial policy

Our standards

We aim to be accurate, fair, clear and transparent. Our articles are written for readers, not for search engines: each one should answer the questions people are asking about a trending story and point to where the facts come from.

How we choose stories

We look at what people in the United States are searching for and discussing, using public signals such as Google Trends, major news outlets and public social-media trends. We skip stories we cannot source well, and we avoid sensational or shocking topics, graphic violence and content that exists only to provoke.

Sourcing & fact-checking

• We prefer primary sources: official filings and data, government websites, league and company announcements, and court records, plus established news organizations.
• Key facts, figures and names are linked inline to their source, and every article ends with a list of sources.
• We do not invent quotes, statistics, people or anecdotes. If something is unconfirmed or disputed, we say so.
• Published and updated times are shown on every article (U.S. Eastern Time).

Use of AI tools

Our articles are researched and drafted with the assistance of AI tools, and every article is reviewed by the TrendCanopy editorial team before it is published. The review checks key facts against the linked sources and removes anything that cannot be supported. AI-assisted articles carry an editorial note saying so. We follow Google Search’s guidance on generative AI content and its helpful, people-first content guidelines: we do not use AI to mass-produce pages or to manipulate search rankings.

Bylines

Articles are published under the shared byline TrendCanopy Editorial Team. We do not use invented personas or credentials.

Images

We only use images we have the right to use: files from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons or public-domain terms, photos from free-license libraries whose terms allow commercial use, official press images where the terms allow it, and original graphics we create. Every image is credited with its creator and license. We do not use copyrighted news photos without a license.

Corrections

When we make a mistake we fix it promptly and add a note to the article explaining what changed and when. To report an error, email marciapatreid@gmail.com with the article link.

Independence & advertising

Advertising and editorial are separate. Advertisers do not choose or review our stories. Ads are labeled as advertising and are never formatted to look like articles. If we ever publish sponsored content or use affiliate links, they will be clearly labeled.

Elections, health and money

For elections we point readers to official sources such as vote.gov and state election offices, and we do not endorse candidates. Money articles are general information, not investment advice. We do not publish medical claims that are not supported by reliable health authorities.