Submission guidelines: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:16, 18 March 2014

As asked for on the front page: Discussion of Submission Guidelines.

It wouldn't be slashdot without hot-button topics generating hundreds of posts in areas on the more political charged side of science (global warming, nuclear energy, weapons, evolution, etc.)

I've noticed that the quality of articles on Slashdot has gone down a lot in recent years. Even if Slashdot goes back to the original format, I think we can make a much better site by having better articles.

Submission Guidelines

There are some general things that are recommended when making a story submission which not only enhance the reader's enjoyment of your submission, but also increase its chance of being accepted in the first instance:

Be neutral and factual in both Subject and Summary. You can wait until the article is posted or, if you must, include your opinion clearly marked as opinion at the end of the Summary
Provide Original Content. Do not copy/paste other people's work.
Avoid paywalled articles if possible. If a paywalled article must be used then mark it as such: [Paywalled]. This is also true for sites that show an advertisement before loading the article.
Use primary sources wherever possible. If an article refers to an original work then link to the original work rather than the article unless the article provides new and relevant information.
Use at least two source links if possible. This gives the reader options and helps insulate against other sites' outages or page removals.
For controversial issues, use source links from sites with opposing biases. If a wolf says he wants sheep for dinner, don't ask another wolf if that is a good idea, ask a sheep.
If there is a study or deeper link listed in one of the articles you are linking to, you should also include that direct link. Some news sites link to study abstracts, and they are the primary source material.
If the new articles that you are linking to reference older articles, you may link to them as well to provide background or quotes.
Explain acronyms for most things. The first time you use it, spell it out. Then on subsequent uses, use the acronym. With our goal of being a global site, things such as the US FAA or British OfCom may not be obvious to those outside those countries.
Wikipedia links are a good source of background information and statistics.
Check that your links are timely. Nothing is worse than warning about something that Snopes disproved 5 years ago.
When quoting a sentence or less, use quotes. When quoting more than a single sentence, use blockquotes, as this make the text stand out more.
Double-check your story in preview prior to submission, including opening all links. The less an editor has to edit, the more chance your submission has of being approved.

There are also some things to avoid:

Don't grumble about rejection of your submission. As the site grows, more people will submit the same story. We are also trying to include a 'reason for rejection' mechanism in the system.
Avoid unauthorized copying. Don't copy/paste from other similar sites - that is simply setting up your editor for failure, or a mocking on IRC. It will also result in any further stories that you submit being passed over in favour of others because of the increased time it will take for the editor to check your story and sources.
While we encourage a global community, the language of the site is English. Avoid links to non-English sources unless you can also provide a link to a good quality translation into English.
Do not use 'linkbaiting' i.e. the practice of including celebrity names or intentionally misleading subjects to entice people to click through from search engines.

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 ''I've noticed that the quality of articles on Slashdot has gone down a lot in recent years. Even if Slashdot goes back to the original format, I think we can make a much better site by having better articles.''
-==Source Standards==
+==Submission Guidelines==
-* Link to most primary source possible.
-* No more linking to fly-by-night blogs or linkbaits
-::Editors are responsible for checking all links that go in a story  (preferably from inside a sandbox)
-* Link to print-version instead of 50-page clickthrough
-* If sites get Soylented, should article links automatically Corel Cache?
-::Would there be a way of switching to a different cache on the fly, for when Corel Cache goes out of business?
-* No more linkbait titles.  After Slashcott, will look up that article... but Dice basically admitted they put celebrity names and intentionally misleading subjects to entice people to click through from search engines.  This is a scummy horrible practice that needs to go.  !!
+There are some general things that are recommended when making a story submission which not only enhance the reader's enjoyment of your submission, but also increase its chance of being accepted in the first instance:
-* TFTitle == TFS == TFA  !!!
+* '''Be neutral and factual''' in both Subject and Summary.  You can wait until the article is posted or, if you must, include your opinion '''clearly marked as opinion''' at the end of the Summary
+* '''Provide Original Content'''.  Do not copy/paste other people's work.
+* '''Avoid paywalled articles''' if possible.  If a paywalled article ''must'' be used then mark it as such: [Paywalled]. This is also true for sites that show an advertisement before loading the article.
+* Use '''primary sources''' wherever possible.  If an article refers to an original work then link to the original work rather than the article '''unless the article provides new and relevant information'''.
+* Use at least '''two source links''' if possible.  This gives the reader options and helps insulate against other sites' outages or page removals.
+* For controversial issues, use '''source links from sites with opposing biases'''.  If a wolf says he wants sheep for dinner, don't ask another wolf if that is a good idea, ask a sheep.
+* If there is a '''study or deeper link listed''' in one of the articles you are linking to, you should also include that direct link.  Some news sites link to study abstracts, and they are the primary source material.
+* If the new articles that you are linking to reference older articles, you may link to them as well to '''provide background or quotes'''.
+* '''Explain acronyms''' for most things.  The first time you use it, spell it out.  Then on subsequent uses, use the acronym.  With our goal of being a global site, things such as the US FAA or British OfCom may not be obvious to those outside those countries.
+* '''Wikipedia links''' are a good source of background information and statistics.
+* Check that your '''links are timely'''.  Nothing is worse than warning about something that Snopes disproved 5 years ago.
+* When '''quoting a sentence or less, use quotes.'''  When quoting '''more than a single sentence, use blockquotes''', as this make the text stand out more.
+* '''Double-check your story in preview''' prior to submission, including opening all links.  The less an editor has to edit, the more chance your submission has of being approved.
+There are also some things to avoid:
+* '''Don't grumble about rejection''' of your submission.  As the site grows, more people will submit the same story.  We are also trying to include a 'reason for rejection' mechanism in the system.
+* '''Avoid unauthorized copying'''. Don't copy/paste from other similar sites - that is simply setting up your editor for failure, or a mocking on IRC.  It will also result in any further stories that you submit being passed over in favour of others because of the increased time it will take for the editor to check your story and sources.
+* While we encourage a global community, the language of the site is English.  '''Avoid links to non-English sources''' unless you can also provide a link to a good quality translation into English.
+* '''Do not use 'linkbaiting' ''' i.e. the practice of including celebrity names or intentionally misleading subjects to entice people to click through from search engines.
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Submission guidelines: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:16, 18 March 2014

Submission Guidelines

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