ABC 17’s editorial approach to covering the 2024 primary and general elections

EDITOR'S NOTE: Article updated with additional detail on ABC 17's coverage priorities and audience engagement options.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Our goal is to produce accurate, transparent, and trustworthy coverage for members of an engaged and informed local electorate.

And in Mid-Missouri, home to the state's capital city, that job is even more important.

Elections today are different than before. Misinformation, AI-driven deep fakes and online security issues make it harder than ever to know where to go for the real thing.

That's where we come in.

At ABC 17 News, we are your source for unbiased and unflinching examinations of the candidates and issues on the state and county levels. The presidential race is the biggest on the ballot, but Missouri will choose a governor in November along with its members of Congress and county officeholders.

But first, we'll be there for the August primary. Then we'll follow the winners on to November.

ABC 17 News will always be transparent about its reporting and unbiased in our approach to covering politics, in 2024 and beyond.

Earning trust through transparency

While it is impossible to plan for every potential coverage scenario, it is our intention to explain our
overall editorial approach and priorities.

• To maintain continuity in our coverage, we will take a “beat” approach by assigning specific reporters to cover individual candidates and issues; this will allow our team of journalists to immerse themselves in the subject matter leading up to election day. While it may not always be possible to schedule with 100% consistency, we will do our best.
• In our TV and digital stories, we will clearly attribute sources of all data and documentation included in the report (and include hyperlinks when available).
• When we interview a candidate, we will post the full, unedited video version of the interview, as well as a written transcription on our website and news app.
• When covering multiple candidates running for the same race, we will attempt to fairly compare each by asking the same (or similar) questions and by allowing equal time for each response.
• If a candidate chooses not to answer a direct question from one of our reporters, we will make a respectful second attempt to ask the question again. If the candidate selects to not answer a second time, we may choose to not include his/her response in our edited story (the full interview will remain available online, however).
• If we choose to interview a political expert, it will be so the individual can help explain a complex issue without taking a political position. We will thoroughly vet the individual’s background and explain why the interview is important/relevant.
• When we stream or air a scheduled candidate speech, we will request a hard copy in advance and, when provided, post it with the archived video of the speech.

Check out our Voter Guide for everything you need to know about the August ballot.

Our coverage priorities

As an independent newsgathering organization, we have developed coverage priorities to guide our political reporting. The list was derived from audience feedback and internal newsroom discussion and will take priority over orchestrated campaign events organized by individual campaigns.

• Crime: Helping our audience stay safe is always one of our top news priorities. Research over several years has consistently shown ABC 17 News that crime is a top area of concern for our viewers. We will continue to track violent crimes and where they're being committed and make candidates outline their plans to reduce violent crime.
• Economy: Even if the macro-level numbers show a continued economic recovery, Mid-Missourians are still feeling the pinch of inflation in their pocketbooks. Families are paying more for household items and, in many cases, pay raises aren't enough to cover increased costs. We will ask candidates how they plan to keep prices low and to outline their spending priorities.
• Housing: Housing has become a major issue around the country. The COVID-19 pandemic drove a spike in housing costs that has not abated. Meanwhile, the number of people experiencing homelessness has increased and the issue has gained prominence in Mid-Missouri. We will report on specific plans candidates have to address the issue.

Producing accurate and unbiased coverage

According to the American Psychological Association, implicit bias “is a negative attitude, of which one is not consciously aware, against a specific social group. Implicit bias is thought to be shaped by experience and based on learned associations between particular qualities and social categories, including race and/or gender. Individuals’ perceptions and behaviors can be influenced by the implicit biases they hold, even if they are unaware they hold such biases.”

Awareness and knowledge of the potential for implicit bias are our best defenses against it influencing our reporting. We have already adopted the following best practices from the Center for Racial Justice Innovation into our companywide editorial guidelines, and will apply them to our political coverage:

• Avoid stereotypes
• Use a multiracial lens, and consider all communities of color.
• Focus on actions and impacts, rather than attitudes and intentions.
• Ensure headlines, images, captions and graphics are fair and responsible in their depiction of people (of color), and coverage of the issues.

We will also assign reporters to fact-check statements made by candidates during campaign appearances and in advertising messages paid for by individual campaigns and/or political action committees. Fact-check reporting will include attribution to the sources used to confirm or contradict candidate statements, and we will also include information about who is paying for advertising messages.

Get engaged and informed by checking our online voter's guide

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• Personalized profile allows you to create a site avatar and keep track of your personal engagement history.
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