The Africans Time aims to correct verified factual errors clearly and appropriately.
We do not claim that published journalism can never contain mistakes. When a material factual error is identified, we review the evidence and correct the record where necessary. The form of the correction depends on whether the issue is a factual error, unclear wording, later information or a disagreement with material that remains supported by the evidence.
How to Report an Error
Readers, sources, companies, institutions and other affected parties can submit a correction request when they believe published information is inaccurate, materially incomplete or presented in a way that creates a factual misunderstanding.
What to Send
- the URL of the relevant article;
- the exact statement, figure, quotation or detail you believe is incorrect;
- a short explanation of the suspected error;
- a reliable document, source or other evidence where available;
- contact details if follow-up is needed.
Specific evidence is more useful than a general request to change or remove an article because it allows the disputed claim to be assessed directly.
How We Review a Correction Request
- Identify the specific claim being disputed.
- Review the source material used in the original article.
- Review any evidence submitted with the correction request.
- Check relevant primary or authoritative sources.
- Contact relevant parties where clarification is necessary.
- Determine whether the article is inaccurate, unclear, outdated or remains supported by the evidence.
- Apply the appropriate editorial action.
We give particular weight to official documents, regulatory records, company filings, court records, public datasets, original transcripts or recordings and other reliable documentary evidence.
The purpose of the review is to establish whether the published material needs to be corrected, clarified, updated or left unchanged based on the available evidence.
Possible Outcomes
Correction
A correction is made when factual information was materially wrong when published.
This may involve an incorrect name, date, location, title, figure, statistic, currency, ownership description, quotation, attribution, project status, regulatory status or other material factual detail.
Where the error materially affects the reader's understanding of the article, the correction should make the substance of the change clear rather than silently replacing the original wording.
Clarification
A clarification may be added where the original wording was not necessarily false but was incomplete, ambiguous or reasonably capable of creating a material misunderstanding.
A clarification is intended to improve precision without implying that every clarified statement was factually wrong.
Update
An update adds important information that became available after publication.
An update does not automatically mean the original article contained an error. Developing stories, economic data, regulatory decisions and project status can change after the original publication date.
No Change
No correction is made where the published material remains factually supported by the available evidence.
A disagreement with tone, interpretation, emphasis or accurate but unfavourable reporting is not automatically a factual error.
What Normally Does Not Receive a Correction Note
Minor edits that do not alter factual meaning may be made without a separate correction note because they do not change the substance of the published reporting.
- spelling;
- grammar;
- punctuation;
- formatting;
- typographical errors;
- broken links;
- minor readability improvements.
Significant Corrections
Where an error materially changes the reader's understanding of a story, a correction note should be considered.
That note should explain the substance of the change clearly enough for readers to understand what was corrected and why the revised wording differs from the earlier publication.
The Africans Time does not aim to conceal material factual corrections through silent replacement.
Changing Information Is Not Always an Error
Revised Data
Government agencies, central banks, statistics offices and international organisations sometimes revise figures after publication. If The Africans Time accurately reported the official figure available at the time, the later revision does not necessarily mean the original article was wrong.
Where the revised figure materially changes the interpretation of the subject, the article may be updated to reflect the newer information.
Project Status
A project can move from announced to approved, financed, under construction or operational. It can also be delayed, suspended or cancelled. A later change does not make earlier coverage incorrect if the original article accurately described the status at the time.
The distinction between a factual correction and a later status update is important because both preserve an accurate record of what was known at different stages.
Developing Stories
Articles may be updated when governments, companies, courts or other authoritative sources provide new information after publication.
New information can expand, refine or change the understanding of a developing event without making every earlier fact inaccurate.
Disagreement, Reputation and Removal Requests
The Africans Time does not normally remove accurate editorial coverage solely because it is unfavourable or commercially inconvenient.
The following do not automatically require a correction:
- disagreement with an editorial interpretation;
- dissatisfaction with accurate reporting;
- a preference for promotional wording;
- a request to replace supported factual language with an organisation's preferred description.
Removal may be considered only in exceptional circumstances where there is a strong editorial, factual, privacy, safety or other justified reason. Where correction, clarification or update adequately addresses the issue, that approach is generally preferable because it preserves the published record while correcting the problem.
Companies, Advertisers and Sponsors
Companies, governments, advertisers and sponsors may report factual errors like any other reader.
A commercial relationship does not create a special right to alter accurate independent reporting or to replace supported facts with preferred promotional language.
Correction decisions are based on evidence rather than advertising spend, sponsorship, political influence or reputational pressure.
Quotes, Rankings and Visual Material
A materially inaccurate or wrongly attributed quotation may be corrected. An accurate quotation is not automatically replaced merely because a source later prefers different wording.
Rankings and comparisons may be revised when official data changes, calculations are corrected, project status changes or new comparable data becomes available. A change in ranking caused by new data is not necessarily evidence that the earlier ranking was incorrectly calculated.
Corrections may also apply to:
- image captions;
- incorrect image identification;
- chart labels;
- data visualisations;
- table values;
- source attributions.
AI-Generated Images
The Africans Time uses AI only for image generation and other visual preparation or editing.
If an AI-generated illustration is misleading, incorrectly labelled or presented in a way that could cause readers to mistake it for documentary evidence, it may be corrected, relabelled, replaced or removed.
The same principle applies to captions or presentation that inaccurately suggest a synthetic image records a real event.
Confidential Sources
The fact that information came from a confidential source does not remove The Africans Time's responsibility to correct a verified factual error.
We do not disclose confidential source identities merely because a correction request is made. Verification and confidentiality are separate responsibilities.
Contact
- Factual corrections
- [email protected]
- Broader editorial questions
- [email protected]
- Advertising or sponsored-content concerns
- [email protected]
- General enquiries
- [email protected]
Addis Ababa 1000
Ethiopia