This is our internal editorial style guide, published openly — partly for transparency, partly because a few readers have asked how we write the way we write.
Voice
We write like we’re explaining something to a smart colleague who doesn’t have time to be flattered. Short sentences where they’ll do. No hedging when we’re actually confident. No jargon we haven’t earned the right to use.
What we avoid
- Passive voice that hides who actually did what
- Buzzwords standing in for analysis — “leverage,” “synergy,” “game-changing”
- Headlines that promise more than the piece delivers
- Unnamed sources when a named one would do
Formatting conventions
- UK English spelling
- Numbers under 10 spelled out; 10 and above as numerals
- Headings in sentence case, not Title Case
- Every factual claim gets a source; every source gets a link
Corrections
We don’t say a piece was “updated.” We say exactly what changed, and when, at the bottom of the article.