Code of Ethics

Blockchain Academics holds itself to four principles, in this order of priority: accuracy, independence, fairness, and accountability. Where they conflict, accuracy wins.

We owe our readers truthful reporting, not access. We owe our sources discretion within the rules they agreed to, not protection from the truth. We owe our subjects the right to respond, not the right to shape our story. We owe our employer profitable journalism — which is a consequence of the first three obligations, not an alternative to them.

Editorial independence is non-negotiable. Sales, partnerships, marketing, and the founder do not direct coverage. Sponsored content is labelled as such and is not produced by the editorial team. The editorial team has the authority to publish or kill any story without commercial review.

We do not accept payment, equity, gifts above nominal value (USD $50), or junkets in exchange for coverage. Travel paid by conferences or sources is disclosed in the byline footer of any article that results. Press passes for events are not considered gifts.

Writers and editors disclose all crypto holdings at the USD $1,000+ threshold per asset on their author page, refreshed quarterly. Holdings that constitute a conflict for a specific story (the writer holds >USD $1,000 of the asset they are covering) trigger recusal. Recused writers do not write, edit, or fact-check that story. Editors verify recusals are honored.

Blockchain Academics does not cover companies that are clients of BCA Studio (our production agency) without explicit disclosure in the article footer. Holdings of DEXT Force Ventures (our sister fund) are disclosed at /financial-disclosures and called out in every article touching a portfolio company.

Subjects of investigative reporting are contacted before publication with the substance of allegations and given a reasonable window (typically 24–48 hours, longer for individuals; 4–8 hours for breaking news where evidence is overwhelming) to respond. Responses are quoted accurately, in context, and at sufficient length for the position to be understood.

We do not run anonymous attacks. Anonymous sources are used only when the information is essential, the source has a verifiable basis to know it, the editor knows the source’s identity, and the source faces concrete risk if named — per our sourcing policy.

Plagiarism — using another writer’s work without attribution — results in immediate removal of the article, public retraction, and termination. Fabrication — inventing quotes, sources, or facts — results in the same.

Aggregating reporting from another outlet is permitted with explicit credit and a link to the original source. Direct quotes from another outlet are limited to fair-use length and always linked to the source.

AI assistance in drafting, summarization, or transcription is permitted as a tool, never as a byline. Articles that use AI assistance carry an AI-assisted flag in the disclosure footer. The human writer and editor of record remain accountable for every word published. AI output is fact-checked by humans before publication, with the same rigor as a human first draft.

Errors get corrected fast and visibly. The full correction policy is at /corrections and /editorial-standards#corrections. We do not silently edit. Substantive changes carry a timestamped correction note in the article footer.

Tips, complaints, allegations of bias, or claims of error go to [email protected]. We respond to every credible complaint, on the record. Stories where the complainant’s argument prevails are corrected; stories where it does not are explained.