Compliance works only where there are stopping points. If material moves from author to publication without decision points, that is not a process — it is a conveyor belt.
Here are the key gateways in our model:
Brief. Check whether there is a specific customer problem. If not, return it to the initiator. This is the first safeguard against producing content simply because “we need to publish something”.
Fact-checking. Check whether all material claims are supported. If not, return it with a specific code:
FACT_UNVERIFIEDOUTDATED_SOURCEMISSING_SOURCECONTRADICTORY_SOURCESAUTHOR_INTERPRETATION_PRESENTED_AS_FACT
Ethical review. This is not “I feel the article is ethical”; it is a checklist:
- Transparency: Is the author clear? Are commercial interests disclosed? Is advertising separated from editorial content?
- Manipulation: Is there false urgency, artificial scarcity, pressure through fear, shame, or guilt?
- Informed choice: Are limitations stated and alternatives presented?
- Customer interests: Does the recommendation actually serve the customer’s task?
💡 Insight: If ethical review depends on the mood of one person, it is not control — it is a lottery. A checklist makes ethics reproducible.
Risk-based routing: ethics should not kill speed
Low risk — ordinary informational material → automated checks → editor.
- Medium risk — contains a commercial recommendation → Ethics Review.
- High risk — sensitive claims or possible financial consequences → Ethics + Legal + Product Owner.
This keeps the model economically viable. Not every text should pass through the same heavy process.
Continue the series:
How Compliance Works: Ethics as a Process, Not a Slogan
How Compliance Works: Roles and Responsibilities
