Election

Almost everyone says they want “independent” news. It’s hard to imagine someone saying they want explicitly biased news coverage that leans toward one partisan bent or another. But “independent” means a lot of very different things to different people.

At The Nevada Independent, here’s what “independent” means to us. 

It means that we are dedicated to diving deep into the most important state policy issues and providing a clear, easy-to-comprehend while still substantive treatment of major issues. That’s everything from explaining how the state government operates and why certain major decisions at the state Legislature are made, giving necessary context around the latest outrage in the school district, and providing a sober look at the future of water in Southern Nevada. 

The other side of that coin is elections and political coverage — who is in a certain office can play an outsized role in determining why certain policies or decisions are made. 

We value clarity, context, a focus on the big picture, and an appreciation of new or timely elements that warrant speediness in a fast-paced, online news environment — but never at the expense of accuracy. We will be pitched, courted, and insulted by both sides of the political debate — it’s our responsibility as independent journalists to suss out what actually matters, and what is just extraneous noise. 

It doesn’t mean that we’re squarely in the middle of an ever-shifting partisan debate, or happy to sit on the sidelines in matters of grave importance to the civic community of Nevada. We’re not stenographers, unwilling to push back or not explain demonstrably false statements. Transparency is a critical aspect of being independent — it’s why every donor, big and small, is listed on our website and in every story that mentions that person or group.

That kind of independent journalism means closely tracking plots to upend election administration in rural counties, keeping a tally of the governor’s campaign trail promises once in office, and publishing deeply reported previews of major races that give readers a sense of both policy and personality differences between candidates. We’re relying on combined decades of experience in covering Nevada’s political scene and elections, and our core values in determining which stories we cover, and how we cover them. We’re not going to get it right 100 percent of the time — no one does. But it’s our pledge to correct mistakes as soon as possible, and explain big decisions to readers clearly and directly. If you have a correction, tip, idea, or just want to say hi, all of that contact information can be found here.