Ownership, funding info, and advertising policy
Chowhound is owned and operated by Static Media Inc., a Delaware corporation. Static Media was founded in 2012 and is backed by Novacap. For more information visit: www.static.com. Static Media investors do not interact with or interfere with our editorial coverage decisions.
The vast majority of revenue that Static Media generates is from programmatic advertising through respected ad platforms such as Google. As such, the Static Media editorial staff are not influenced by direct sales opportunities with brands or advertisers. The editorial staff are also not involved in operating the programmatic advertising business, making them independent of significant revenue-generating activity. As our editorial staff is not involved in the ad experience, these ads do not reflect the views of Static Media and do not impact our coverage. However, our operations team is very focused on maintaining a high standard of quality.
In the event our sales team closes an advertising campaign, affiliate link or sponsorship, the posts will be clearly labeled with a disclosure statement.
The Static Media editorial team has existing relationships with major studios, networks, streaming platforms and other partners which can result in exclusive content and interviews. Our staff follows a thorough ethics policy which governs our objectivity and limits this influence.
Mission statement
Our mission is to inform and engage our readers, telling them everything they want to know – and even things they didn't know they wanted to know – about food. We strive to always provide a well-rounded reading experience, bring both the biggest news of the day and a break from the news.
Fact-checking policy
Accuracy in reporting
Whenever we publish an article, we work very hard to ensure that everything we write is accurate and up to date. Whenever we discover that we've made an error in any way, we make sure to update and correct those mistakes as quickly as possible.
When we revisit older articles, we check them again and make sure they're up to date so our readers always have the best news and information available.
Sourcing and quotations
We take our commitment to facts and accuracy very seriously. We take great pains to make sure we trace facts and information back to their original sources as often as possible, and include links to those primary and (if necessary) secondary sources for full transparency. We also consult trusted experts in the food world to ensure the highest level of factuality on a topic. If we can't support an assertion, we don't assert it.
The best way to get a person's story or opinion is to make sure that they're the ones saying it. To that end, we make sure to use direct quotes from the subjects of our articles as often as possible. We never want to put words in someone's mouth, so we take pride in making sure that we use our subjects' quotes in fair and accurate ways.
Ethics policy
It isn't enough to simply make sure that our articles are factual and accurate; at Chowhound, we also consider the greater context of the world we all live in. Our editorial staff stresses fairness in our stories. We don't just report what happened, but we also put those facts into context and make sure we're faithfully relaying the big picture to our readers. We always seek to think about the way things could be read by someone with a different perspective, not just the way we intend for them to be read.
Conflicts of interest
We strive to avoid any conflicts of interest involved in our coverage, whether real or perceived. When we receive free products, exclusive interviews, or other access, we disclose this to our readers in relevant articles.
Types of content
When an article contains our own editorial opinions, such as in a product review, restaurant review, or ranking, it will be clearly identified as such. We also use a prominent disclosure statement to transparently inform readers when articles include affiliate links or other sponsorships.
Public figures
When we cover people or events, we make sure to limit our focus to those who are in the public eye. We often cover celebrities, social media personalities, and other public figures, but draw the line at invading the privacy of those who never asked for publicity or attention.
Diversity
We strive to have a diverse group of writers and editors to represent a variety of opinions and perspectives on the topics we cover. We also have guidelines and trainings for diversity, equity, and inclusion to ensure we're celebrating all cultures and making all readers feel welcomed, seen, and understood.
Corrections policy
Whenever we find we've erred or missed anything, we always go back to our articles and make corrections to be accurate and prevent the spread of misinformation. We take accuracy very seriously, and strive to make sure our articles are up-to-date whenever we've discovered that we've made a mistake.
An updated timestamp is placed at the top of each article whenever we make changes. We also add a dated explanatory note to articles when significant corrections are needed so our audience knows we take accuracy seriously and that we will own up to our mistakes.
If you have a correction for an article, it can be submitted at (908) 514-8038 or .