How it works
Nothing auto-publishes.
Write it yourself, use a little AI, or let the desk gather drafts for you. Humans still publish. You keep the brand — either we run the desk for you, or you license it and staff it yourself.
Two ways to work with us
Same evidence bar either way. Editorial surfaces on Factual Media stay merit only — never sold.
Managed desk
We are the working newsroom for your outlet. You bring brand, audience, and stories (or tips). Our staff screen, review, and release under your name. Best for creators and partners who want credibility without building a full org chart.
Licensed outlet
You operate inside FM’s platform. At Ship/Pro you gain speed on your page after trust. At Whitelabel you stand up a full house — your Owner, Chief, editors, and journalists — on our platform. We provide the machine and the bar; you hire the people.
How you run the desk
The News Desk is the same for everyone. AI is optional — from none to a full gather queue.
Classic
Old-school news work. You write, attach files, review, and publish. You can ignore AI entirely.
Assist
Same desk. Use search, rewrite, or flags on the stories that need a hand. Skip whenever you want.
Gather
The desk pulls labeled intake and a credited photo — or an illustration if there isn’t one — into your draft queue. You still approve. Built for people who pay to save time, not to skip the bar. In development — staff queue first; partners cannot turn it on yet.
The desk roles
On a managed outlet, these are typically Factual Media staff working for you. On Whitelabel, the same roles exist in your org — you appoint them.
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Owner | Account and commercial control. Sets who may join the desk. |
| Chief Editor | Editorial authority. Sensitive publishes, overrides, and desk standards. |
| Editors | Claim stories, run review, approve or send back. Publish where permitted. |
| Journalists | Compose and revise. Deep review where assigned. Do not publish alone on managed desks. |
| Screeners | Triage intake. Catch promo, junk, and obvious policy breaks before editors spend time. |
| Tip handlers | Confidential tip inbox. Forward vetted leads; protect source identity. |
Permissions are enforced in the product — not honour system. See the editorial policy for the binding summary.
Managed path
We staff the desk for your outlet.
- You submit (or we intake tips / compose against your brief).
- Screeners and AI triage. Promo and weak evidence sink.
- Editors claim, verify against evidence tiers, and release to your outlet.
- Network editorial features (briefs, pins, merit lists) stay separate — never sold.
Pilot through Pro lean this way. You focus on audience; we run the house day to day.
Licensed path
You write and operate; FM’s rules still bind.
- Submit to your outlet (portal or desk handoff).
- AI screens for spam, affiliates, mismatches, and obvious red flags.
- Pass routes per trust · Flag waits for staff · Deny comes with a reason — revise and resubmit.
- After trust (Ship+): AI pass can go straight to your page and socials. Network picks still need human sign-off.
New partners: first posts are always staff-reviewed or flagged. No exceptions.
Whitelabel — full house under your brand
You appoint your own Owner, Chief Editor, editors, journalists, and screeners. Same role model as our desk; same evidence bar; master agreement. Factual Media does not supply your newsroom payroll by default — we license the platform, hosting path, and policy framework. Optional setup and ops help by agreement.
Town news, politics, conflict desks, regional editions, creator networks — high touch, not self-serve.
Apply / contact →Trust tiers
| Tier | What happens |
|---|---|
| New partner | All submissions reviewed or flagged until a clean track record. |
| Standard / managed | AI screen + FM staff (or flag queue) before publish to your outlet. |
| Ship (after trust) | AI pass → your page and socials. Network editorial features still need human sign-off. |
| Whitelabel | Your staff run the outlet under the agreement. Platform bar still binds; network picks still merit only. |
AI on the desk
First line — not publisher. The desk can gather from sources that outlet configured, flag junk, and suggest a draft. No AI output goes live without human approval.
Images
If a source already posted a photo, we use that URL and credit them. If there isn’t one, the desk can generate an illustration — labelled as illustration, never as a photograph of the event. A human still glances before publish.
Built for the field
Some of the most important reporting happens where the network is weak, blocked, or watched — conflict and crisis zones, remote regions, and places under pressure to make a story disappear. The desk is built to keep working there.
- Capture and write with no signal — notes, drafts, and photos are saved and encrypted on the device, then file themselves the moment the connection returns. Nothing is lost to a dropped line. (Live now.)
- You choose how each piece files — send automatically when signal returns, or hold for your explicit go. Set it once and keep moving. (Live now.)
- Provable originals — each published piece can carry a tamper-proof fingerprint and timestamp, so a reporter can later prove what they filed and when, unchanged. (On the way.)
The reporter carries none of the machinery — the desk handles securing, syncing, and the record. Resilience speeds delivery and protects the work; it never lowers the evidence bar a story must clear.
Packages & pricing
Commercial detail — Pilot through Whitelabel — lives on the partners page.
Partner packages →