{ "document": "CSA Content Standards \u2014 Master Reference", "version": "1.9.18", "last_updated": "2026-06-02", "base_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools", "agent_routing": { "description": "Rules in this document are distributed across specialized inputs and human-only workflows. Each page and subsection is annotated with AGENT-AUDIENCE tags. See _data/agent_routing.yml for the canonical tag vocabulary.", "tags": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "tag_definitions_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/assets/sources/agent_routing.yml" }, "sections": [ { "section": 1, "id": "brand-guidelines", "title": "General Guidelines", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#1-brand-guidelines", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/brand-guidelines" }, { "section": 2, "id": "headlines", "title": "Headlines", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#2-headlines", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/headlines", "notes": "Outlet-specific and platform-specific standards. Universal headline rules are in Brand Guidelines \u00a71.2 (80\u2013100 chars fallback). Platform overrides: Apple News 90\u2013120 chars (sweet spot 110\u2013119); SmartNews 70\u201390 chars; Push notifications 70\u201389 chars. Avoid question headlines for organic reach on both Apple News and SmartNews. Avoid number-led headlines on Apple News (positive on SmartNews). Avoid 'Did you miss' on all surfaces.", "platform_char_counts": { "universal_fallback": { "min": 80, "max": 100 }, "apple_news": { "min": 90, "max": 120, "sweet_spot_min": 110, "sweet_spot_max": 119 }, "smartnews": { "min": 70, "max": 90 }, "push_notification": { "min": 70, "max": 89, "truncation_note": "Most mobile devices truncate at ~80 chars \u2014 front-load the subject" }, "trend_hunter_b2c": { "min": 90, "max": 104, "sweet_spot_min": 90, "sweet_spot_max": 104, "data_validated": true, "note": "TH Headline Analysis 2026-06-02 (368 articles): 90-104 peak (614 PV); <75 drops to 352, 105+ to 340; corpus median 86. Distribution-platform range takes precedence when platform-bound." } }, "trend_hunter_b2c_banned_punctuation": ["\u2014", "\u2013", ":", ";"], "trend_hunter_b2c_banned_punctuation_exception": "Marks intrinsic to a proper noun, publication name, or work/study title (e.g., the colon in 'CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians') are preserved verbatim; where a platform filter cannot keep one, substitute a comma, never strip with no replacement.", "formula_constraints": { "question_headlines": { "apple_news": "avoid", "smartnews": "avoid", "push": "avoid" }, "number_lead": { "apple_news": "avoid (data-validated underperformer)", "smartnews": "positive signal" }, "what_to_know": { "smartnews": "avoid (directional finding)", "apple_news": "avoid for organic; editorially favored for featured slots" }, "did_you_miss": { "all": "avoid \u2014 historically under 100 views median" } } }, { "section": 3, "id": "article-formats", "title": "Article Formats", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#3-article-formats", "formats": [ { "id": "everything-to-know", "title": "Everything to Know", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#32-everything-to-know", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/everything-to-know" }, { "id": "recipe", "title": "Recipe", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#33-recipe", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/recipe" }, { "id": "timeline", "title": "Timeline", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#34-timeline", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/timeline" }, { "id": "interview", "title": "Interview", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#35-interview", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/interview" }, { "id": "recap", "title": "Recap", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#36-recap", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/recap" }, { "id": "fan-content", "title": "Fan Theory / Fan Question", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#37-fan-theory--fan-question", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/fan-content" }, { "id": "obituary", "title": "Obituary", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#38-obituary", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/obituary" }, { "id": "couple-baby", "title": "Couple / Baby", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#39-couple--baby", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/couple-baby" }, { "id": "cast", "title": "Cast Introduction / Update", "status": "pending", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#310-cast-introduction--update", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/cast" }, { "id": "faq", "title": "FAQ / Service Journalism", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#311-faq--service-journalism", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/faq" }, { "id": "what-to-know-next", "title": "What to Know Next", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#312-what-to-know-next", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/what-to-know-next" }, { "id": "discover-explainer", "title": "Google Discover Explainer", "status": "retired", "retired_on": "2026-05-28", "supersedes_by": "what-to-know-next", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#31-google-discover-explainer", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/discover-explainer" } ] }, { "section": 4, "id": "personas", "title": "Personas", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#4-personas", "personas": [ { "id": "discover-browser", "title": "The Discover Browser", "platform": "Google Discover", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#41-the-discover-browser", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/discover-browser" }, { "id": "curious-optimizer", "title": "The Curious Optimizer", "platform": "Trend Hunter / B2C Channels", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#42-the-curious-optimizer", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/curious-optimizer" }, { "id": "science-enthusiast", "title": "The Wonder-Driven Science Enthusiast", "platform": "Science / Discovery Features", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#43-the-wonder-driven-science-enthusiast", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/science-enthusiast" }, { "id": "curious-explorer", "title": "The Curious Explorer", "platform": "Discovery / Science / Nature", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#44-the-curious-explorer", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/curious-explorer" }, { "id": "watercooler-insider", "title": "The Watercooler Insider", "platform": "Entertainment / Trending", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#45-the-watercooler-insider", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/watercooler-insider" } ] }, { "section": 5, "id": "acceptable-sources", "title": "Acceptable Sources", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#5-acceptable-sources", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/acceptable-sources" }, { "section": 6, "id": "publishing-guidelines", "title": "Publishing Guidelines", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#6-publishing-guidelines", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/publishing-guidelines", "notes": "CUE, WordPress, and Apple News publishing rules are active. \u00a76.4 is a reserved stub for future export destinations." }, { "section": 7, "id": "follow-up-content", "title": "Follow-Up Content", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#7-follow-up-content", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/follow-up-content", "notes": "Editorial strategy guide for extending breaking news coverage across 13 story types. General principles also documented in Brand Guidelines \u00a71.9." }, { "section": 8, "id": "tool-responsibility", "title": "AI Tool Responsibility", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#8-ai-tool-responsibility", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/tool-responsibility", "notes": "Policy and escalation procedures for all team members using the CSA or any AI-assisted tool. Covers single-piece concerns, supervisor conflict, recurring issues, plagiarism/attribution, partner content, and override documentation." }, { "section": 9, "id": "claims-validation", "title": "Claims Validation", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#9-claims-validation", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/claims-validation", "notes": "Editorial procedures for the CSA built-in fact-checking module. Applicability determined by content pipeline tier: High Touch (HITL) = full application; Semi-Automated = selective; Fully Automated (game scores, weather, United Robots) = not required. Five verdicts: TRUE, FALSE, MISLEADING, INSUFFICIENT_EVIDENCE, OVERGENERALIZED. Two editorial actions: Needs Correction (FALSE, MISLEADING) and Needs Clarification (OVERGENERALIZED, INSUFFICIENT_EVIDENCE). Includes source authority tiers, content-type elevated risk rules, and escalation logic." }, { "section": 10, "id": "platform-guidance", "title": "Platform Guidance", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#10-platform-guidance", "notes": "External rule-sets that constrain output beyond General Guidelines: distribution-platform requirements and per-publication style guides.", "platforms": [ { "id": "platform-smartnews", "section": "10.1", "title": "SmartNews", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/platform-smartnews", "notes": "SmartFormat RSS/XML feed. Headline 70\u201390 chars (data-validated); no question headlines; no 'What to Know' endings; number-led trend positive. No CSS/scripted styling in SmartView. No GIFs. Feed thumbnail: media:thumbnail, 4:3, 320\u00d7240px. GA4 tracks in-app views not referral traffic." }, { "id": "platform-apple-news", "section": "10.2", "title": "Apple News", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/platform-apple-news", "notes": "ANF (recommended) or RSS. Headline 90\u2013120 chars (110\u2013119 sweet spot, data-validated); no question or number-led headlines for algorithmic reach (data-validated). Subtitle field required. AI content: byline/co-byline + News Publisher metadata. 100% self-sold revenue, 70% Apple-sold." }, { "id": "us-weekly", "section": "10.3", "title": "Us Weekly", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/us-weekly", "notes": "Celebrity news / pop-culture mass-market publication. Sister-rule across onpage / promo / SEO heds with shared keywords; numerals in heds and H2s; single quotes (not double); no periods in heds; no ampersands; no Oxford / serial comma. Bold celebrity names in body and link tag pages where available. Em dashes and ellipses get spaces on both sides. Couples / pairs / duos take plural verbs (Us Weekly only). Reference hierarchy: Us Weekly Style Supplement \u2192 Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary 11th Edition \u2192 AP Stylebook \u2192 Chicago Manual of Style \u2192 Words Into Type." }, { "id": "trend-hunter-b2c", "section": "10.4", "title": "Trend Hunter B2C", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/trend-hunter-b2c", "notes": "Curiosity-first trend publication targeted at The Curious Optimizer (psychographic persona spanning all demographics \u2014 see \u00a74.2). Audience framed psychographically NOT demographically \u2014 never assume age, gender, income, location, relationship status, or parental status. Voice: Smart, Approachable, Curious, Practical. Four intent tiers: Discovery / Understanding / Evaluation / Action. Article structure incorporates four elements: What It Is / Why It Matters / Who It's For / How to Experience It. Short paragraphs (2-3 sentences max), bulleted lists, pull-out Quick Takeaways. Banned: trendy slang (slay/bestie/vibes), demographic stereotyping, clickbait, dense academic prose, generic trend-roundup-without-insight." }, { "id": "womans-world", "section": "10.5", "title": "Woman's World", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/womans-world", "notes": "Heartfelt online companion for women living the best years of their lives. Audience: Gen X in their 50s through Baby Boomers in their 60s and beyond. Tone north star: Dolly Parton (edge but not a people-pleaser). Voice attributes: Warm, Empathetic, Optimistic, Practical, Trustworthy. Adopt one of four writing personas per piece (Informative Best Friend / Approachable Professional / Relatable Expert / Comforting Confidant) and rotate. Couples / pairs / duos take SINGULAR verbs (AMI default; mashups always plural \u2014 OPPOSITE of Us Weekly). Em dashes have NO surrounding spaces (matches AP \u2014 opposite of Us Weekly). No Oxford / serial comma. Avoid: 'old' / 'struggling' / 'senior moments' / 'meno brain' / 'cankles' / partisan framing / millennial / Gen Z slang. Faith content with explicit 'God' is permitted and encouraged but ONLY in pieces explicitly about faith \u2014 never forced into recipes / beauty / unrelated content. Health claims cite board-certified physicians, RDs, or peer-reviewed research within 5 years. Products under $20 that actually work. 15 Health Tentpoles. Reference hierarchy: AMI Women's Group Digital Style Guide \u2192 Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary 11th Edition \u2192 AP Stylebook \u2192 Chicago Manual of Style \u2192 Words Into Type." }, { "id": "ap-compatible", "section": "10.6", "title": "AP-Compatible", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/ap-compatible", "notes": "McClatchy / CSA implementation of the Associated Press Stylebook \u2014 the working journalism style standard for content not covered by an outlet-specific style guide. Default for any McClatchy newsroom content where US Weekly, Woman's World, or Trend Hunter B2C don't apply. Three nested tiers (Quick is a subset of Condensed is a subset of Thorough): Quick ~2K tokens for breaking news / high-volume / spot-check, Condensed ~12K tokens recommended default covering Parts 1-12 (Punctuation / Capitalization / Numbers / Abbreviations / Titles / Attribution / Word Usage / Race & Identity / Legal / Sports / Business / Datelines), Thorough ~25K tokens covers Parts 1-22 plus appendices. Cross-publication divergences: couples/pairs/duos take singular verbs (Us Weekly is the exception with plural); em dashes have no surrounding spaces (Us Weekly is the exception with spaces); no Oxford / serial comma.", "tiers": [ { "id": "ap-compatible-quick", "section": "10.6.1", "title": "AP-Compatible \u2014 Quick", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/ap-compatible-quick", "notes": "~2K tokens / ~1,600 words. 21 flat sections covering essentials. Best for breaking news, high-volume batch processing, spot-check before publishing. The rules a working editor needs at-the-elbow." }, { "id": "ap-compatible-condensed", "section": "10.6.2", "title": "AP-Compatible \u2014 Condensed", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/ap-compatible-condensed", "notes": "~12K tokens / ~9,600 words. RECOMMENDED DEFAULT. Parts 1-12: Punctuation, Capitalization, Numbers, Abbreviations, Titles, Attribution, Word Usage, Race & Identity, Legal, Sports, Business, Datelines." }, { "id": "ap-compatible-thorough", "section": "10.6.3", "title": "AP-Compatible \u2014 Thorough", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "human-only" ], "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/ap-compatible-thorough", "notes": "~25K tokens / ~19,000 words. Full reference. Parts 1-22 (Condensed plus Weather, Health, Science & Tech, Religion, Elections, Military, Food, Environment, Transportation, Headlines & Captions) plus appendices (commonly misspelled words, redundancies, clich\u00e9s, problematic phrases, tricky plurals)." } ] } ] }, { "section": 11, "id": "layered-enforcement", "title": "Layered Enforcement", "status": "active", "agent_audiences": [ "general-style", "headline", "seo", "human-only" ], "url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/master-reference#11-layered-enforcement", "standalone_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/layered-enforcement", "notes": "Conceptual model + machine-readable rules contract for layered style guidance enforcement. Defines how General \u2192 Persona \u2192 Format \u2192 Platform layers compose + how conflicts resolve. Default precedence (highest first): [platform, format, persona, general]; lower (more specific) layer wins on conflict. Companion: Conflict Register (every known cross-layer rule + override + resolution). Machine-readable artifacts at /assets/sources/rules/: schema.yaml (rule entry shape), precedence.yaml (resolution algorithm + tie-breakers + Composer extension proposal), conflict-register.yaml (every known rule + overrides). Reconciliation note: CSA backend currently STACKS layers (no override semantics) per its Confluence 'How Style Guides Work' doc \u2014 Persona and Article Format are not separate layers in the current Composer; the style_guide field exists in code but is informational-only and not yet used to apply guides automatically; National Team users not going through Platform Distribution get no platform-specific voice. The proposed Composer extension is described in \u00a711.5 of the Layered Enforcement page.", "rules_artifacts": { "schema": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/assets/sources/rules/schema.yaml", "precedence": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/assets/sources/rules/precedence.yaml", "conflict_register": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/assets/sources/rules/conflict-register.yaml" }, "companion_pages": { "concept_doc": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/layered-enforcement", "conflict_register_human_view": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/conflict-register" } } ], "raw_markdown_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/assets/sources/master-reference.md", "site_documentation_url": "https://csa-content-standards.pierce.tools/docs/documentation", "addenda": [ { "id": "scaled-content-policy", "title": "Scaled Content Policy", "url": "/docs/scaled-content-policy/", "version_introduced": "v1.9.11", "last_updated": "2026-04-27", "purpose": "Synthesis of Google scaled-content-abuse policy + March 2024/2026 enforcement learnings, scoped to McClatchy + CSA. 9-check audit list applies to inbound partner-feed content." }, { "id": "ai-content-vetting", "title": "AI Content Vetting \u2014 Partner-Feed Policy", "url": "/docs/ai-content-vetting/", "version_introduced": "v1.9.11", "last_updated": "2026-05-14", "purpose": "5-gate test for inbound partner-feed content (named author + substance + plagiarism/AI-detection + editorial fit + cadence audit) + per-partner stance table." }, { "id": "bridge-content-rules", "title": "Bridge Content Rules", "url": "/docs/bridge-content-rules/", "version_introduced": "v1.9.11", "last_updated": "2026-05-14", "purpose": "CSA bridge-variant keyword rule loosened to trend-relevance-only via platform_content_type=bridge override in headline.h2_keywords." }, { "id": "restricted-individuals", "title": "Restricted Individuals \u2014 Governance Rule (Scoping)", "url": "/docs/restricted-individuals/", "version_introduced": "v1.9.11", "last_updated": "2026-05-14", "purpose": "NON-PUBLIC scoping rule for legal-compliance-flagged individuals. Source list pending handover. Engagement gate + scrub-at-surface enforcement model." }, { "id": "insights-agent-endpoint-audit-2026-05-14", "title": "Insights Agent \u2192 CSA Push Endpoint Pre-Activation Audit", "url": "/docs/insights-agent-endpoint-audit-2026-05-14/", "version_introduced": "v1.9.11", "last_updated": "2026-05-14", "purpose": "Pre-activation audit of the Insights Agent vendor \u2192 CSA push endpoint. Governed by AI Content Vetting + Scaled Content Policy \u00a76/\u00a77." } ] }