Policies

The Indian Link newspaper and website are powerful public mediums of communication and thus, we aim to respect the fourth pillar of democracy through responsible and balanced reporting.

Journalists are watchdogs whose duty is to scrutinise the powerful, challenge authority, and give a voice to the voiceless while being transparent in the process. As part of the dynamic Australian Indian community, our objective remains to be independent without being completely detached.

Fact Checking Policy

We want to be perfectly transparent and accurate with our words. We know that words possess power and must be employed responsibly. At Indian Link, writers must always verify the information they gather and write. This includes information such as names, locations, facts, statements, and accounts related to the content we publish. Writers independently fact-check and use their own judgment and information in line with our Ethics policy.

We aim to use unbiased information and data sources as much as possible.

Ownership and Funding

Indian Link Media Group is independently owned.

Any funding received by advertisers is only used for advertising purposes and does not influence our content or services.

Corrections Policy

If we ever publish content that might be inaccurate, we will take very step to rectify that mistake and keep up our credibility.
If an error is discovered – by a reader or a staff member of Indian Link – it should be immediately brought to the attention of the Editor and corrected as soon as possible.
If the error is disputed, the Editor will be consulted and will have the final say.
If we are substantively correcting content (an article, photo caption, headline, graphic or video) we will promptly update the piece and publish a correction explaining the changes.

Clarification and Updates
When our writing is factually correct but the language we used to explain those facts is not as clear or detailed as it should be, the language will be rewritten and a clarification note will be added to the story.

A clarification or update note can also be used to express that we initially failed to seek a comment that has since been added to the story or that new reporting has shifted our account of an event.

Ethics Policy

NEWS GATHERING: FAIRNESS AND SOURCING
Storytelling can be as straightforward as phoning a few people – or as taxing as a month-long investigation.
No matter the process, we believe in acquiring all sides of the story and delivering a fact-checked, balanced, and contextual story.
Fairness
Indian Link writers must possess a strong sense of fairness which must reflect in their writing. Motives of sources along with tone and language used in stories must be handled responsibly and impartially. Personal interests of writers will not undermine their accuracy or autonomy.

Anonymous Sources
Since anonymously sourced information could expose truths that would be in the public interest, it is important to protect the source’s identity in case they might be harmfully targeted for speaking up.
All anonymous sources and use of fictitious names are deemed credible and approved by the Editor before publishing.

Use of Quotes
Indian Link writers do not alter the words uttered by their sources.

In some cases where the interviewee wishes their statements to be grammatically correct or the same point/view to be worded differently, they may agree to be paraphrased by the journalist.

Plagiarism and Originality
On the Indian Link website and in the magazine, all information, quotes, and passages from other publications must be attributed.

All content must be originally produced or credited to the original source.

Bylines with the name “Indian Link” will have their authors/newswires mentioned in the beginning or at the end of the article. If no name is mentioned, it is assumed that the piece is an original contribution by a writer for Indian Link.

Regarding visual accuracy – images must be used in the relevant context (outdated images, fake images, unclear images must not be used). Photo captions must disclose the origin of the photo if not supplied by the subject of the article.

PERSONAL CONFLICTS AND BUSINESS
The crux of credible journalism is independence from the subjects we cover.
If Indian Link editorial employees have a personal connection to a story, it must be disclosed to the Editor. Additionally, they must not participate in activities that covertly or overtly favour them or their kin by virtue of Indian Link employment.
Indian Link editorial employees shall not engage in business transactions with people and institutions they cover.

Blogging
Indian Link reporters and writers who run their own blogs must not publish under the name of Indian Link. The views published on said platforms should not be attributed to Indian Link unless edited/approved by the Editor.
Our writers and reporters should not write or blog for a site operated by an Indian Link competitor without approval of the Editor. Questions concerning what constitutes a competitor should be discussed with the editor.
Writers should also avoid defamatory practices when publishing posts on their blog. Personal websites and blogs of staff members should be free of advertising or sponsorships from collectives or individuals who may fall into your area of coverage or expertise.
Tickets, Credentials, Food/Meals and Gifts
Indian Link editorial employees may use media credentials to cover stories, events and sports. Employees not specifically assigned to an event may use credentials for admission only with approval of the Editor.
Indian Link editorial department employees should never ask for or accept gifts from news sources or newsmakers.
Indian Link editorial employees involved with stories on food, chefs and/or their restaurants will not accept free meals from the restaurants they cover.
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COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Political and Civic Involvement
The political sphere can be a contentious one. Employees must remain impartial when reporting political stories and engaging in public discourse when representing the newspaper.

Joining any overtly political organisation or rallies (except for the purpose of covering the event) must be avoided to protect the credibility of the employee and Indian Link.

Implementation
The purpose of this ethics policy is to protect the credibility of Indian Link. Queries about the policy or its application under specific circumstances should be discussed with the Editor.
Disclosure and discussion are the fundamentals of ethical journalism.

Privacy Policy

With this policy statement, Indian Link (“we”, “us”, “our”) expresses its deep commitment towards protecting your privacy when you engage with us, our content, or services. We are bound by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

This policy explains how Indian Link handles your personal information. It also outlines how we may collect, use, and disclose information about you or your use of our content or services.

Your privacy matters to us, so whether you are new to Indian Link or are a long-time user, please take the time to get to know our practices.

Defining Personal Information

In simple terms, it is any information that can be used to personally identify you. This may include (but is not limited to) your name, age, gender, postcode, and contact details (including phone numbers and email addresses) and financial information (credit card, direct debit or PayPal account information).

Personal information that we collect and store

We may collect the following types of personal information:

name
email address
telephone number
any additional information (for example – payment information) necessary to deliver services described on our Classifieds website and to respond to your enquiries
any additional information relating to you that you provide to us directly through our websites or indirectly through use of our website or online presence through Indian Link representatives or otherwise;

Cookies

In some cases, we may also collect your information using cookies and other tracking devices. We use cookies to personalise our content for you and track traffic to our website.

Tracking traffic may include logging your IP address to find out whether you are a new user or a returning user, what device you use to access our site (for example – mobile/laptop), what areas of the Indian Link website you visit and how much time you spend on the page.

This information is useful to us because we can report statistics, analyse trends, administer our content, and diagnose problems. This is also done so that we may perform better with knowledge of user insights and improve the quality of content delivered to our readers.

Please note that this information does not constitute personal information because it does not identify you or anyone else, the Australian Privacy Principles do not apply and we may use this information for any purpose and by any means whatsoever.

How we collect personal information

Most of the personal information we collect is when you directly provide us with the same unless it is unreasonable or impractical to do so. We do this in ways including:

through your access and use of our website, apps or sending text messages/emails to us
through someone else who has provided us with your information with your consent or for given us your contact details for interviewing purposes
during conversations between you and our journalists
when you post a listing on our Classifieds website
we may also collect personal information from third parties including: third party companies such as government agencies and entities, advertisers, mailing lists, contractors and business partners

Reasons for collecting, storing, using and disclosing personal information

The primary purpose for which we collect information about you is to enable us to perform our business activities and functions and to provide you with the best possible quality of user experience.

We collect, store, use and disclose your personal information for the following purposes:

To provide you with content
To communicate with you
To conduct competitions
Administrative, marketing (including direct marketing), promotional, planning, content development, quality control and research purposes, or those of our contractors or external service providers; as required or permitted by any law (including the Privacy Act)

Your personal information will not be shared other than as stated in this Privacy Policy.

How Do We Disclose Your Personal Information

We may disclose your personal information to our employees and related bodies like corporate, partnerships, joint venture entities, contractors or external service providers for the operation of our websites or our business, fulfilling requests by you, and otherwise provide products and services to you, including without limitation,

our existing or potential agents and/or business partners;
our sponsors, or promoters of any competition that we conduct or promote via our services;
specific third parties authorised by you to receive information held by us;
the police
as required or permitted by any law (including the Privacy Act).

Email Direct Marketing

While Indian Link sends tailored content in the form of our weekly e-newsletter to our email subscribers, we may also send direct marketing communications via email/SMS/Facebook messages after you have provided us with your details/signed up with us/liked us on Facebook.

In addition, at any time, you may opt-out of receiving marketing communications from us by contacting us (details below) or by using the opt-out facilities provided (e.g. an unsubscribe link). We will then ensure that your name is removed from our contact list. We do not provide your personal information to other organisations for the purpose of direct marketing unless expressly authorised by you.

If you receive communications from us that you believe have been sent to you other than in accordance with this policy, or in breach of any law, please contact us using the details provided below.

Accessing and Correcting Your Personal Information

You may request access to any personal information we store about you at any time by contacting us (details below).

Complaining about a breach of privacy

If you believe your privacy has been breached by us, have any questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy please, contact us using the contact information below and provide details of the incident so that we can investigate it.

We will treat your requests or grievances confidentially and aim to resolve them in a timely and appropriate manner.

Please contact our Privacy Officer at:

Privacy Officer
Indian Link Media Group
Post: GPO Box 108
Sydney NSW 2001
Tel: 02 92901855
Email: Info@indianlink.com.au

Security

Indian Link will take all reasonable steps to protect the personal information that we store. Please let us know immediately if you suspect any misuse or loss of, or unauthorised access to, your personal information.

Links

Our website may contain links to other websites operated by third parties. We make no representations or warranties in relation to the privacy practices of any third-party website and we are not responsible for the privacy policies or the content of any third-party website. Third-party websites are responsible for informing you about their own privacy practices.

Changes to Our Privacy Policy

We may change this privacy policy from time to time. Only the latest updated version of this privacy policy will appear on our website. This privacy policy was last updated in September 2020.