Style guide

This page is intended for contributors, community members and readers who want to understand how we write and why.

How we write

We follow AP style and hold ourselves to high editorial standards to build trust with our readers. Here's how that shows up in every story:

• Headlines and subheads use sentence case (only proper nouns are capitalized)
• All quotes are accurate and never paraphrased inside quotation marks
• Quotes appear in standalone paragraphs
• We avoid stacked quotes and aim for clarity and context between speakers
• We do not use commonly-used euphemisms like “officer-involved shooting”
• We refer to people as “undocumented immigrants” when relevant
• Our formatting supports SEO and accessibility — including meta descriptions and schema markup
• We write for real people — not algorithms

We do not publish clickbait, sensationalism or filler.

Want to pitch a story?

We accept pitches from community members, students, subject-matter experts and experienced journalists. You don’t need formal training — just a story idea that matters and a commitment to accuracy.

To pitch: Email organmountainnews@gmail.com.

Include:

• A short summary of your idea
• Why it matters
• Whether you’d like to write it or just share the tip

Credit and compensation

We credit all contributors by name or anonymously if needed. Compensation is available when funding allows, especially for deeply reported or time-intensive stories.