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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
1. Our Commitment to Accuracy
Lake County News strives for the highest standards of accuracy and fairness in our reporting. We recognize that errors can occur in the fast-paced environment of 24/7 digital news. When mistakes happen, our policy is to correct them promptly, transparently and completely.
2. Reporting an Error
We welcome feedback and correction requests from our readers, sources and the community.
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Contact: To report an error, please email our editorial team at
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-274-9904. -
Information needed: If emailing, please include "Correction Request" and the article headline in the subject line. In the body of the email, please include the publication date, a link to the article, a specific description of the error and, if appropriate, supporting documentation.
Review process: All correction requests are reviewed by our editorial staff. Corrections are made when an error has been verified.
3. How We Handle Corrections
Immediate updates: Once an error is verified, we will update the text of the online article as quickly as possible.
Correction notes: For substantive errors, including incorrect names, dates, locations, quotations or data, a clear correction note will be added to the bottom of the article explaining what was changed.
Minor typos: Typographical, spelling or grammatical errors that do not alter the facts or meaning of a story may be corrected without an attached correction note.
Clarifications: In cases where information is accurate but may be incomplete, unclear or subject to misunderstanding, we may add a clarification note to provide additional context or explanation. Clarifications are not corrections and do not indicate that factual information was reported incorrectly.
Transparency: We strive not to make substantive factual changes to published stories without informing readers through a correction, clarification or update note.
4. Social Media and Breaking News
Social media corrections: If inaccurate information is published or amplified on our social media channels, we will post a correction, clarification or updated information on the affected platform whenever practical.
Developing stories: During rapidly unfolding breaking news events, stories may be updated as new information becomes available. Such updates do not require a correction note unless a previously published factual error is being corrected.
5. Legal and Public Record Clarifications
Police logs and court cases: We rely on official law enforcement and court records when reporting arrests, charges and related proceedings. If charges against an individual are dropped or dismissed, or if the individual is acquitted, we may update the original story or publish a follow-up upon receipt of verified documentation.
6. Archives
We generally do not remove accurate, lawfully published articles from our archives unless required by law or extraordinary circumstances warrant further editorial review.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
Freedom of the press is a core principle of American democracy, and Lake County News strives to uphold the importance of press freedom through truthful, ethical and accurate coverage of the community.
Lake County News is an online-based independent, nonpartisan news publication serving Lake County, California, and the greater rural Northern California region.
Lake County News approaches its work with a dedication to fairness and accuracy, timely coverage that is mindful of details large and small, and reporting that includes diverse voices and wide-ranging perspectives.
With truth, integrity and freedom as our prime movers, we seek to tell the story of Lake County and rural Northern California with honesty, context, fairness, intelligence, courage and the power of the written word.
We diligently pursue stories that affect our communities and the people who live in them.
In this work, we seek to reflect the many intellectual, cultural and generational perspectives that shape our communities.
Lake County News is dedicated to producing journalism that is truthful, independent and the result of our own reporting and analysis. Original work is the foundation of our credibility with readers and the community we serve. We properly attribute the reporting, work and ideas of others and prohibit plagiarism in all forms. As such, our staff and contributors adhere to strict anti-plagiarism policies and our foundational principles of fairness, transparency and dedication to the truth.
We are committed to accountability in our work. When errors occur, we correct them promptly and transparently. Our corrections practices are governed by Lake County News' Corrections Policy, which outlines the procedures for requesting, reviewing, and publishing corrections and clarifications.
Lake County News adheres to the Society of Professional Journalists' Code of Ethics, the key tenets of which include the following:
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Seek Truth and Report It.
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Minimize Harm.
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Act Independently.
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Be Accountable and Transparent.
It also follows the professional standards of the Local Independent Online News Publishers organization, of which it is a member.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
Lake County News, founded in 2006, is an award-winning, 24/7 online-only hyperlocal news publication serving rural Lake County in Northern California.
Husband and wife team John Jensen and Elizabeth Larson own and operate Lake County News. They founded the publication, which launched on Dec. 19, 2006.
Lake County News exists to address the coverage gap that resulted from corporate media gutting — and, in some cases, closing — the community’s newspapers.
We are dedicated to faithful, accurate and contextual reporting rooted in time-tested and proven journalistic practices and the highest ethical standards.
Our coverage spans a broad range of issues — including natural disasters, government, health, public safety and social issues — while maintaining a clear focus on accountability reporting.
By examining how decisions at all levels of government affect daily life, we provide essential, independent information that helps residents navigate challenges, engage in their community and make informed choices.
In 2014, Lake County News received the Society of Professional Journalists’ James Madison Award for defending the First Amendment in response to its fight to uncover the fact that a sitting sheriff’s lies had resulted in him being placed on a “Brady” list of officers who could not testify under oath by the Lake County District Attorney’s Office.
OUR TEAM
Elizabeth Larson
Elizabeth Larson is co-founder, co-owner, editor and co-publisher of Lake County News. She grew up in Northern California on a dairy farm and put together her first newspaper at the kitchen table. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Montana, Missoula, and a Master's of Philosophy degree in classics from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom. She has spent 30 years in publishing, and also is pastor of Kelseyville Presbyterian Church, where she was instrumental in launching a resilience center.
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John Jensen
John Jensen is co-founder, co-owner, co-publisher, advertising director and site administrator for Lake County News. He was raised in a family of journalists and studied print and broadcast journalism at Sonoma State University. He has primarily worked in journalism and information technology. In 2006 he built the news site lakeconews.com. He also owns and operates the Konocti Bait Shack at Lucerne Harbor Park where he fishes and performs admin functions.
Email:
Lingzi Chen
Lingzi Chen is a staff reporter at Lake County News and a 2024-2026 California Local News Fellow. A graduate of Columbia Journalism School, she covers a wide variety of topics in Lake County, from government to human interest, breaking news and health. She is a recipient of the Journalism and Women Symposium, or JAWS, 2026 Health Journalism Fellowship in which she is examining disparities and inequities in Lake County health care resulting from federal policy.
Email:
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
CANDIDATE INTRODUCTIONS/ANNOUNCEMENTS
Individuals who are running for office may submit an announcement story for inclusion in the news section or commentary section of Lake County News.
To be considered for the news section, these statements must be written in the third person, and avoid both the overuse of adjectives and exclamation marks.
They should be submitted no later than one month preceding the election. Last-minute submissions are discouraged due to the potential for creating the appearance of bias and favoritism on the part of our publication.
Candidates’ commentaries may be written in the first person and may be submitted up to the normal letters and commentary pre-election deadline.
While the goal is to allow candidates to introduce themselves, the editor reserves the right to edit them as necessary for format and grammar and will address factual errors.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters to the editor are welcomed on an ongoing basis during campaigns, but must adhere to the deadlines outlined below.
While letters emphasize opinions, they should adhere to fact.
Letters should be submitted as text documents — not phone texts. Letters sent as image files, phone texts or social media posts (Facebook, X, Instagram, etc.) may be rejected.
To be considered for publication, letters to the editor must have the following:
• They must be signed by at least one person. If the writer is representing a group, additional names may also be listed. Generally, group letters include up to six signatories, but in certain circumstances, may include more.
• They must include a phone number and email in the event the editor needs to contact them.
• They must include a city or town of residence, as determined by the letter writer’s residential zip code. Only cities and Census-designated places are considered accurate residential addresses.
Submit letters and guest commentaries via email to
ANTI-ASTROTURF POLICY
Letters may not be submitted by intermediaries, but must come from the letter writer(s) directly. Only in extreme circumstances, and with the permission of the editor, will letters regarding political matters and campaigns that are submitted by anyone other than the letter writer be considered for publication.
COMMENTARY
Like letters, guest editorials/commentaries must be signed by at least one person, with a city/town of residence based on zip code and a phone number and email in case the editor needs to contact them.
ENDORSEMENT STATEMENTS
We decline to accept endorsements as community news items.
All endorsement statements must be signed as letters or commentaries, with the signature of at least one writer or multiple writers in the case of committees.
MULTIPLE LETTERS FROM ONE WRITER
Lake County News does not publish more than one letter from a single letter writer within a two-week period. This is particularly enforced during elections.
DEADLINES
Publication of all political submissions ends 48 hours ahead of an election. Only in situations where news coverage is pertinent will publication related to the races be published.
Letters or commentaries should be submitted well in advance of that deadline. In order to ensure publication, the deadline for letter and commentary submissions is 5 p.m. the Friday preceding a Tuesday election.
PAID ADVERTISEMENTS/SPONSORED CONTENT
We do not offer sponsored content. Paid advertisement is separate and distinct from news coverage.
POLICIES SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Lake County News reviews and updates its policies on a regular basis. It reserves the right to adjust its policies at any time in order to adapt to, or respond appropriately to, circumstances that may arise within the course of its political coverage.