KOPJE is an independent South African magazine. These are the standards we hold our journalism to — written down so readers can hold us to them too.
KOPJE is editorially independent. No advertiser, sponsor, partner or commercial relationship has the power to commission, edit, kill or alter the substance of our journalism. Editorial decisions sit with the editor-in-chief and section editors. Where commercial relationships exist (advertising, native advertising, referral partnerships), we disclose them in plain language — see our Advertising & Sponsorship Disclosure.
We grant anonymity sparingly and only when (a) the information is genuinely in the public interest, (b) the source faces credible risk — professional, legal or personal — if named, and (c) the editor has verified the source's identity and standing. Anonymous sources are described as specifically as the protection allows (e.g. “a senior Treasury official familiar with the negotiations”).
Every published article is read by a section editor before publication. Long-form features (1,500+ words) and any article touching finance, property, health, law or public policy are additionally checked against primary sources by a second reader. Quotes are verified back to the recording or notes. Names, titles, dates, monetary figures and statutory references are checked individually.
Writers must disclose to the editor any personal, financial or professional relationship with a subject of their reporting before they accept the assignment. KOPJE staff and contributors do not own equity in companies they cover (without disclosure) and do not accept gifts, hospitality or paid travel from companies or PR firms whose clients we cover. Where travel or accommodation is provided for reviews — common in food, travel and motoring journalism — that fact is disclosed at the foot of the article.
Plagiarism — passing off another writer's words or original reporting as one's own — is grounds for immediate termination of the contributor relationship. Where we build on another publication's original reporting, we link to and credit them in the body of the piece.
KOPJE does not publish articles written by generative AI. AI tools may be used internally for research assistance (transcription, document summary, code generation for analytical tasks). Any factual claim produced or surfaced by an AI tool is verified against primary sources before it appears in a published piece. Where AI is materially involved in producing a graphic, image or interactive element, that fact is disclosed in the credit line.
We commission original photography wherever budgets allow. Stock and library imagery is credited under the hero image. Images are not manipulated beyond standard adjustments (crop, exposure, colour balance) without disclosure. Composite images are labelled as such.
Where an article makes a substantive critical claim about a named individual or organisation, we contact them in advance and offer a meaningful opportunity to respond. Their response — or the fact that they declined to respond — appears in the published piece.
Errors of fact are corrected promptly and transparently. See our Corrections Policy for how to request a correction and how corrections are noted on the article.
Questions about our editorial standards, or feedback on a specific piece, should be addressed to the editor-in-chief at editors@kopje-mag.com.