June 17, 2005

Dear AP Staffers:

There is deep concern throughout our industry about anonymous sources and the ways in which their misuse undermines our credibility as journalists.

The recent Newsweek story and revelations about Deep Throat have kept the issue front and center on the minds of editors. In a survey last week by AP and APME, editors of 100 out of 400 newspapers who responded said they ban all use of anonymous sources by their staffs. And many of those that do permit it are tightening their restrictions.

AP has long had an excellent policy on anonymous sources that has set the standard for the rest of the news media. It will be included in full in the forthcoming Associated Press Statement of News Values and Principles. A copy is attached at the bottom of this note and it's also appended to this e-mail as an attachment.

The rules serve us well when we enforce them strictly. But, too often, we're finding that staffers are not familiar with them: They haven't read the policy; they haven't discussed it; sometimes, they have forgotten it.

In some quarters, there is a mistaken notion that using anonymous sources adds an air of exclusivity to our reporting and makes it seem more like a scoop. Some people think when we talk about our journalists doing "source reporting" that we expect or even prefer these sources to be anonymous in our copy.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

A story that identifies its sources is a better piece of journalism, more complete and more credible, than the very same story pegged to unnamed sources.

When we develop relationships with sources, it must be clear to them that our strong preference is always to be able to quote them on the record, by name.

The AP Knows training Web site (reachable from Inside AP) contains many good examples of how reporters can build on-the-record sources that enable them to break stories.

Furthermore, when we meet resistance from the source to using his or her name, our job as journalists is to push back, to fight hard to avoid having to resort to anonymity.

Washington CoB Sandy Johnson has made that bureau a leader in the campaign to pressure government officials to go on the record for briefings that now are routinely conducted under cloak of anonymity. We should carry that fight to other locations.

If we fail to change a source's mind, then we need think hard about whether the material is important enough to justify using it in the story. It may well be that the answer is no.

And when we do put anonymous material on the wire, our policy says that we must describe for the reader why a source insists on going unnamed.

Without this explanation, the granting of anonymity starts to appear casual and routine.

We are sending this note to every AP employee because this issue is so important to our industry.

Every journalist in the company should study the policy. Even if you have read it in the past and think you know it, please go over it again now, word for word. Make copies. Keep them handy in the office. Managers in all bureaus and departments will be arranging sessions for staffers to discuss the rules thoroughly with their colleagues and to resolve any questions. It's essential that everyone develop a sense of ownership of and commitment to this policy.

We hope that those of you who work in departments other than news will also take the time to read the policy and that you will take pride in knowing you work for a company that cares deeply about this vital issue.

Thank you,

Mike Silverman
AP Managing Editor

Kathleen Carroll
AP Executive Editor