Accuracy is the starting point for all good journalism. Get your facts right, then check them again. Know where to look to verify claims or to separate fact from fiction.

Being factual has many dimensions. For example, on the Web it's especially valuable to say what you don’t know, not just what you do — and to ask readers to fill you in as well. Accuracy means correcting what you get wrong, and doing it promptly.

This section offers advice from publishers and pioneers in citizen media and traditional journalism as well as resources and best practices. See our slide show, where experts offer their advice. Watch the screencast on different ways to make corrections. We have a tip sheet and — a favorite — some too-true confessions of mistakes, the kind we all make at least once (and, if we're smart, only once).