Our
Policies:

Mission & Nonpartisan Commitment

The Hawaiʻi Journalism Initiative (HJI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit newsroom dedicated to providing professional, fact-based journalism for the residents of Maui County. HJI is a nonpartisan organization; we do not support or oppose any political party or candidate for public office. Our primary goal is to address the “news desert” crisis by serving geographically isolated and rural communities, including Hana, Moloka‘i, and Lāna‘i.

Editorial Independence & Firewall

Our stories are free to the public, with no paywalls or ads, and published on Maui Now’s website through a partnership with for-profit Pacific Media Group, a primary funder of our work. HJI retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. We maintain a firewall between news coverage decisions and all sources of revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services, or opinions. While the partnership allows HJI to share its work on Maui Now’s platform, the two organizations each maintain their independence and control editorial decisions within their own newsrooms. No funder, partner, or corporate underwriter has the right to assign, review, or edit content prior to publication.

Donor Transparency & Accountability

HJI is overseen by a Maui-based board of directors. The board serves to hold HJI’s staff, operations, and funding accountable and does not make day-to-day editorial decisions.

As a nonprofit, HJI operates through the support of generous donors. We are committed to transparency in every aspect of funding our organization. HJI will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. Donations do not influence our editorial decisions. We will accept anonymous donations for general support only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards are in place to ensure that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by HJI and in compliance with the Institute for Nonprofit NewsMembership Standards.

Sources

• HJI staff will always identify themselves to sources and request permission before recording or putting an interview on the record. Sources must indicate to staff when they would like to share information on background (meaning it may be used, but not attributed to the source) or off the record (meaning the information cannot be publicly shared). 
• HJI staff will make the best effort to reach sources through known forms of contact and allow a reasonable amount of time to respond. Sources may have a smaller window of time to respond in critical, time-sensitive situations. HJI will explain when the reporter has made an effort to reach a source and has been unable to get a comment. 
• HJI strives to put information and sources on the record, with full names. However, HJI may allow the use of anonymous sources provided HJI has determined that the source is credible, the information is vital to the story and only the source in question can provide it. The reporter as well as a supervising editor must know who the source is and must keep their identity confidential. 
• In keeping with the Associated Press and other media outlets, HJI will not identify survivors of sexual assault or domestic violence unless they give permission.  
• HJI does not pay for interviews and does not accept payment or gifts in exchange for doing an interview or story.