The Oasis (Oasis News South Carolina) is a response to South Carolina’s news deserts, but we see ourselves as more than just the news. We strive to be sanctuary from the noise. A place for perspective and consideration.
We produce impactful, independent journalism that examines the interconnectedness between housing, food, transportation, health, criminal justice, family, work, and other factors that weave through everyday life in South Carolina.
Housing
Housing is elemental. Housing is a human right. Stable housing is oxygen to a healthy society. Fair, safe, equitable housing cannot exist where financial profit is the only motivation. People don’t deserve housing just because they can afford it. People deserve clean safe housing that puts them amid opportunities, simply because they are human beings.
Transportation
Transportation is a human right. We cannot have a system that requires transportation to take part in opportunities for housing, work, and quality of life and then deny people access to reliable transportation; and we cannot punish people for not having that access.
Food Security
In America, there is plenty to eat and drink. But not all of it is safe or healthy. Clean, reliable water, access to fresh produce, and the ability to access and afford healthy food options is not negotiable for a healthy society. Hunger and nutrition poverty should not exist in the most abundant society in history.
Work
Workers deserve safe jobs that allow them to live safely and peaceably. The Covid pandemic laid bare how vital service jobs — retail, hospitality, public service — are. But we punish people for having those jobs. The answer to the housing crisis, as described by mayors and elected officials, is often that better jobs and better investment in tech/trade/college education is the answer. That is partially the answer. We also need investment in living wages for workers in vital jobs that are looked upon with derision until something like a pandemic shows how vital they really are.
The Interconnection
We are not anti-capitalist. But the American strain of capitalism often requires continuing expansion and upward mobility. We are proponents of responsible, more equitable capitalism that does not see transactions as all-win or all-lose.
Our society, however, operates in such a way that those who earn basic wages cannot afford to live near their jobs; nor can they live near the recreational opportunities developed cities and towns offer. So they must live farther away, necessitating transportation and, often necessitating services like daycare. The more they have to spend their earnings on these expenses, the less they have for food or medicines, and the less they have to afford things like gym memberships or health programs that keep them from going to doctors.
Debt compounds and people struggle.
When people do not have the net worth to contend with these realities, we punish them by shunning or judging them.
Sometimes they collapse. This, even in secular terms, is a cardinal sin.
Our perspective at The Oasis is that human beings deserve dignity. Americans, no matter their ambitions or bank accounts, deserve the opportunity to live the lives they want for themselves and their families.
We believe that an informed public that has real conversations can find ways to manage these societal illnesses.
We’re not naive enough to think we have solutions. But we are idealistic enough to believe that with nuanced, polite, uncomfortable conversations, we can find new ways to address our issues.
Ethics Policy
Naming sources
Oasis News will not use the last names of anyone who speaks to us about experiencing homelessness. This is done to protect privacy. If an individual grants permission to use their image, we my use the photo to illustrate the story, but will not provide the person’s full name.
Work ethic
Oasis News staff strive to be accurate, contextual, and deep, not first.
We do not serve the movers and shakers, we serve the moved and the shaken.
Our work is public trust, fueled by respect, fairness, and compassion.
Fairness
Oasis News strives to produce fair and accurate reporting about South Carolina.
We will never deliberately distort, exaggerate or oversimplify the facts to fit a predetermined narrative.
We will make good faith efforts to seek other points of view to test the veracity of our reporting and challenge our own assumptions.
We will diligently seek out the subjects of our reporting and give them adequate time to respond to all allegations of wrongdoing.
Non-discrimination policy
Oasis News is an equal opportunity organization and will not allow discrimination based upon age, ethnicity, ancestry, gender, national origin, disability, race, size, religion, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, or any other status prohibited by applicable law.
Partisanship and political involvement
Oasis News staff may participate in advocacy efforts in support of freedom of the press, open government, and public access to information.
Our staff are prohibited from endorsing or advocating for all other ballot measures or legislation, making political campaign contributions, or publicly supporting political candidates, parties, or platforms. Our staff also may not participate in campaign rallies or protests or display political yard signs, flags, banners, or bumper stickers, nor wear clothing or accessories that name or endorse any political party or candidate.
Our staff are prohibited from endorsing public office candidates, campaigns, or causes in any public forum or on any social media platform.
Oasis News staff shall engage with readers of all political stripes in a respectful manner on social media, in person, or in any forum. Our staff may not make social media posts demonstrating political bias.
The Oasis will not endorse political candidates.
If The Oasis publishes opinion pieces, they will be clearly labeled as such.
What sources of information we use to report the news
Oasis News strives to use public records, data, documents, and interviews to produce fair and accurate news reporting.
We will only use anonymous sources when information of compelling public interest cannot be obtained in another way. We sometimes grant anonymity to sources who could face negative personal and professional consequences or physical danger if they were identified. If we choose to grant a source anonymity, we will disclose to readers why we made that decision.
Editors will know the identity of sources so there can be discussion among staff about whether to include an anonymous source in our reporting. Reporters will make every effort to independently verify information provided by anonymous sources.
Oasis News will never pay sources for information or interviews. Oasis News reporters may occasionally buy a source a meal or a nonalcoholic drink. We also sometimes may pay processing fees to public agencies to fill our open records requests.
When Oasis News cannot independently verify information previously reported by other news media, we will credit that source and link back to their work to the extent possible.
We will provide readers with access to the original documents we use in our reporting whenever appropriate and possible.
AI-generated content policy
Oasis News will never publish stories written by AI programs. We may utilize AI tools to help process information or brainstorm ideas; we may utilize AI tools to enhance the quality of images. We will, however, never publish any stories, images, audio, video, or other media formats created by artificial intelligence.
Financial transparency and editorial independence policy
Oasis News retains full authority over editorial content, maintaining a firewall between news coverage decisions and the pursuit of revenue. Accepting financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions.
We may accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities and mission, but all editorial decisions are made independent of donor support. The editorial staff alone maintains full editorial control of any coverage. Donors receive no preferential coverage, have no right to review editorial content before it is published, and do not influence the direction or findings of our reporting in any way.
We do not accept donations from government entities, political parties, elected officials or candidates actively seeking public office, nor do we accept donations from sources who our board of directors deem could present a conflict of interest with our work or compromise our editorial independence.
We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals, organizations and foundations to help with our general operations, coverage of specific topics and special projects. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates as a public trust, we do not pay certain taxes. We may receive funds from standard government programs offered to nonprofits or similar businesses.
Our news judgments are made independently – not based on or influenced by donors or any revenue source. Supporters do not have the right to assign, review or edit content.
We make public all revenue sources and donors who give $5,000 or more per year. As a nonprofit newsroom, we avoid charitable donations from anonymous sources, government entities, political parties, elected officials or candidates seeking public office. We will not accept donations from sources who, deemed by our board of directors, present a conflict of interest with our work or compromise our independence.
Conflicts of interest and gifts
Oasis News will avoid all conflicts of interest in our reporting both real and perceived. We will publicly disclose when we report on or quote a subject that has donated $5,000 or more to Oasis News.
Oasis News staff are not allowed to personally accept meals or gifts of more than nominal value from public officials, companies, advocacy groups or other subjects of news coverage.
We do not accept offers of free travel or accommodations from subjects of news coverage.
Reporters are prohibited from reporting on organizations where a family member works or holds a financial interest.
The board of Oasis News is prohibited from influencing or interfering with the journalism conducted by Oasis News reporters and editors.
How we check our facts
Oasis News editors and reporters make every effort to vet the credibility of all sources of information before publishing a story.
Reporters are responsible for fact checking their work, a process that can include using public records to verify the accuracy of information and talking with sources to review and confirm key parts of a story or our understanding of a situation.
We may seek advice from qualified experts outside the news staff to verify the accuracy and veracity of our research. Outside experts will not be compensated for their advice or assistance.
We do not let sources or the subjects of news coverage read stories before publication. But we may, at our discretion, allow sources to review how they will be quoted in and also seek to verify information contained in a story with sources as part of the fact checking process.
Corrections
Oasis News will promptly respond to requests to correct inaccurate information.
All corrections will be noted at the bottom of the story. You may securely email requests for corrections to OasisNewsDesk@ProtonMail.com
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