Editorial Guidelines: Feminine Perspective Magazine?



Feminine-Perspective Magazine
Civil Society women sharing what our global team See, Hear & Feel

  • Many women and children have a story to tell and their own particular view on world events. You can read them here.
  • FPMag women are professionals who are accustomed to writing reports.
  • Our editors are experienced journalists.

Non-Profit Entity

Feminine-Perspective is a non-profit civil society media extension of a non-profit civil society corporation.

RINJ Press Feminine-Perspective and Feminine-Perspective Magazine are registered operating names of The RINJ Foundation.


The Mission


Feminine-Perspective is pledged to give a voice to those without; and share a feminine perspective on those things that matter most to the safety and human development of women and children.


Editorial Standards


1. Feminine Perspective‘s objective is to give a voice to women and children who must daily fight for their safety and their opportunities.

2. Content must provide a takeaway of a female perspective on how news events impact women, children and their families and where applicable, where the reader can go for assistance or more information,

3. Target audience is decision makers and community leaders who can impact policies that enhance the safety of women and children.

4. Writers are asked to get topic approval from the editor

5. The best articles having the most positive response from readers are those which provide useful “how-to” guides in dealing with health and safety issues. Give the reader something of great value as often as possible.

6. Sources of information will be linked within the paragraph to an object that will open in a new page. Where sources cannot be identified they should be explained and the reader should be told why the source is being protected.

7. Images, graphs and charts must be used where available to help the reader understand the article. All photographs, graphs and charts must be explained and sourced.

8. Authors will write in short sentences, break up large blocks of text with bold headings, and  give the reader bullet points for summary lists of important takeaways.

9. Headlines will relate correctly to the content.

10. Content standards. 

  • Personal and confidential information
    We do not allow the sharing of a private person’s confidential and personally identifiable information (e.g. medical records or financial information). 
  • We do not allow content that infringes intellectual property rights.
  • We do not allow content that features explicit sexual imagery primarily intended to cause sexual arousal.
  • We do not allow content that incites or glorifies violence. We also do not allow extremely graphic or violent materials for the sake of disgusting others.

11. Articles may be republished on written (email) consent. Content must be attributed and its original content maintained.

Standards for interviewing survivors of trauma.

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1.Feminine-Perspective reporters resist the urge to say, “I understand how you feel.”No matter how much you’ve prepared for an interview, you don’t “get it” or “understand” what a source has been through. Every story is unique. Every experience is unique. If our stories aren’t unique, we are doing a disservice to our sources and our readers. Research conditions and circumstances. But once you have done your research, leave it at the door. It doesn’t matter how much knowledge you have on the topic, you can never predict how a particular individual experienced the events personally.

2. Truly prepare for the Feminine-Perspective interview. Reporting on trauma demands special care and increased ethical sensitivity. It requires specialized interviewing skills, understanding of the law, and (at a minimum) a basic awareness about the psychological impact of trauma.

3. Use the term “trauma survivor” rather than “trauma victim.” Get the language correct. People are not “victims” unless they describe themselves that way.

4. Respect a potential interviewee’s right to say no.  Feminine-Perspective will never compel, urge, insist survivors give every detail about a traumatic event.

5. Take control of providing a safe space for sources to discuss their individual trauma(s). Tread carefully and do not exploit or belittle trauma survivors if they open up to you. If you’ve earned their trust, keep it. The secret to good interviewing is active, non-judgmental listening.

6. Don’t underestimate how your own reactions to traumatic details can influence the conversation. If you are finding the conversation challenging, acknowledge that silently to yourself, and bring your focus back to what is being said. Try to listen a little harder and to observe facial expressions and body language. The time for a journalist to process the personal impact of an interview is after it’s complete, away from the interviewee.

7.Feminine-Perspective writers are careful of asking “why” questions — which interrogators tend to favor. Trauma is often associated with high degrees of self-blame, guilt and shame. For this reason, avoid language that might imply the interviewee is responsible in some way. Don’t be surprised if accounts only make partial sense. Frequently survivors of trauma shut down emotionally: Their recall may become or seem fragmented, and in some cases they may have blocked out an event entirely. Incomplete and contradictory accounts are not prima facie evidence of deception, but rather of the struggle interviewees may experience in making sense of what has happened to them.

8. Know that Feminine-Perspective journalists have a responsibility to do everything they can to avoid exposing the interviewee to further abuse and to avoid undermining an interviewee’s standing in the community. Be prepared for survivors to read at least portions of your story before publication, as it can lessen the impact — and possible trauma — of public exposure. (Note: After reading — and seeing evidence of your intentions — an interviewee may decide to share more of the story with you.) Tell the whole story. Sometimes media identify only specific incidents, focusing on the obvious climax. Reporters must understand that a failure to report wholly on a story is, in itself, a form of abuse. Learn how individuals have coped with the trauma in the longer term. Your stories and your relationships will be richer for it.

9. Remember that trauma reporting is an act for the greater good. Utilize information, data, resources and various experiences wisely to provide you with insight and to ensure you’re reporting the truth — not how things appear at first glance. There is never a simple explanation and during your reporting you should be prepared to explore the individual complexities of each story. Speculation has no place in trauma reporting.

10. Look beyond the trauma.Feminine-Perspective story is never just about what happened. Explore regrets and successes and how your interviewee’s life led up to this point. A person is more than just a singular event. Explore the survivor’s story with the same care, attention to detail and respect that you would want if roles were reversed

Professional-editorial-standards-Editors-Association-of-Canada
Feminine Perspective Magazine launched May 2016 – Click the image to load our adopted professional editorial standards


Contributions Welcome

Your contributions are welcome too. Write to us with your story ideas.

 


The entity that operates RINJ.press Feminine-Perspective


“RINJ” (RINJ.ngo / RINJ.ong / RINJ.org) is a private, non-profit, association of humanitarians including nurses, midwives, medics, EMS workers, doctors, lawyers and investigators fighting for the safety of women and children around the world. This association of members comprises an organized and structured global NGO, Civil Society group and *Social Movement. (*Including several of its subsidiary units RINJ in some regions seeks to empower oppressed population elements to mount effective challenges and resist the more powerful and advantaged elites.)

The RINJ Foundation
RINJ operates 100% on funds from private funders to ensure RINJ

  • freedom to offer humanitarian assistance when & where needed; &
  • maintain RINJ independence from political, religious & economic influence.

RINJ volunteers provide assistance to women and children in distress, to survivors of natural or man-made disasters & to victims of armed conflict. RINJ fills its role regardless of race, religion, creed or political convictions.

  • RINJ volunteers observe neutrality and impartiality in the name of universal medical ethics; the rule of law; and the universal right to humanitarian assistance.
  • RINJ claims full & unfettered freedom in the exercise of its functions.
  • RINJ volunteer/members undertake to respect professional codes of ethical standards & maintain independence from political, economic or religious powers.
  • RINJ volunteers/members understand the risks and dangers of the missions they carry out and make no claim for themselves or their assigns for any form of compensation other than that which The RINJ Foundation might be able to afford them.
  • Impartiality & neutrality are not equal to silence. When RINJ workers witness extreme acts of violence against individuals or groups, the organisation may speak out publicly. RINJ may seek to bring attention to extreme need and unacceptable suffering when access to justice or lifesaving medical care is impeded, when medical facilities come under threat, when crises like rape for the purpose of genocide are neglected, or when the provision of aid is inadequate or abused.

 

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