Monster News covers public institutions, public money and the rights of the people those institutions serve. Our local reporting focuses on Wayne and White counties in southern Illinois, alongside national public-interest coverage, analysis and commentary.
Who publishes Monster News
Monster News is part of the Accountability Project Investigative Group (APIG). The newsroom publishes under the Monster News name. Visit APIG.
Monster News publishes through its newsroom and contributors. Our contact page provides a direct channel for questions about the publication, reporting and editorial decisions.
What supports our reporting
Our Source Documents index collects records already linked in published articles, grouped with their reporting context.
Public records, meeting minutes, correspondence, recordings and firsthand accounts are central to our accountability coverage. Articles link to supporting records where practical so readers can inspect the evidence. A document’s existence, a source’s allegation and a court’s finding are different things; the reporting must make those distinctions clear.
Some records contain sensitive personal information. We may publish redacted copies or identified excerpts while preserving originals. A transcription or annotated copy must be identified as such.
Reporting, analysis and illustrations
Monster News publishes both reporting and editorial judgment. Analysis and opinion must rest on accurate facts, and allegations must not be presented as established findings. Our editorial illustrations can be satirical; they are not photographs or evidence of an event.
The Contributors section carries attributed previews or summaries of other publications’ work and links readers to the full original article. Those entries are separate from Monster News’s original reporting.
Independence and disclosure
Under our editorial policy, financial support does not buy favorable coverage or protection from scrutiny. Relevant personal, organizational and financial interests must be disclosed. A contributor’s personal involvement cannot serve as independent corroboration of that contributor’s account.
Corrections and accountability
Readers and subjects can submit factual corrections, supporting documents and responses. Corrections & Responses explains what to send and how material corrections are handled. Our complete editorial and contributor policies apply to newsroom work.