Editorial standards
How we report, source, and verify the news we publish.
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WilCo Guide publishes independent local journalism about Williamson County, Texas. Every article on this site is reported, written, and edited by a real person whose name appears on the byline. This page describes how we work.
Sourcing
We attribute every consequential fact to a named source — a person, a public record, a press release, or a direct observation. When we cite numbers we link to the underlying data; when we cite a quote we name who said it and in what context.
Williamson County government, city governments along the I-35 corridor, the Texas Real Estate Commission, the Williamson County Appraisal District, school district board agendas, and public court records are routine sources for our work. We avoid anonymous sourcing; when we use it, we explain why.
Verification
We confirm consequential facts with at least one independent source before publishing. For breaking news, we publish what we know, label what we are still confirming, and update the article as facts settle.
Conflicts of interest
Reporters and editors disclose any material financial relationship, family tie, or close personal relationship with a person or business they cover. When a conflict is unavoidable, the article carries a visible disclosure note. The publisher does not write about businesses he owns equity in.
AI-assisted reporting
When AI tools materially contribute to an article — drafting, summarization, translation, transcription — the article is flagged as AI-assisted. AI is never used to fabricate quotes, invent sources, or substitute for human judgment. A human editor reviews every AI-assisted draft before publication.
Retractions and unpublishing
We do not unpublish or rewrite articles to hide errors. When an article contains a material error, we publish a correction (see Corrections policy). In rare cases where an article is wholly inaccurate, we may retract it — when we do, the retraction notice replaces the original article and explains what was wrong.
Reach us
Questions about a specific story, our editorial practices, or a source we cite go to the contact email in the footer.