Conflicts of Interest

We publish under a pen name and do not state the author's politics. That leaves one honest way to disclose what could bias our coverage: not a general statement about who the author is, but a record, subject by subject, of anything that could pull a given piece one way.

What counts as a conflict

Before we cover a subject, we ask whether the author has any of the following in relation to it:

• A prior involvement — professional, organizational, or personal work connected to the subject.
• A financial interest — a holding, income source, or funding relationship that the subject could affect.
• A prior public statement — a position already taken, under any name, that the coverage could be seen to defend.

How we disclose it

When one of these applies, we say so on the piece itself, in plain language, at first use of the relevant claim. The entry is then logged here, permanently, whether or not the piece has run yet. Removing a conflict later does not remove the record that it once applied.

Disclosure does not mean we skip the subject. It means you get to weigh the coverage knowing what we know about our own stake in it.

Flag one we missed

If you believe a piece should have disclosed something and didn't, tell us: editor@cairnreview.com, with the piece and what you think we're not saying. We will look into it and answer here, in the open, the same way we handle corrections.

The log

No conflicts logged yet. This page will list them as they happen.