How We Make Washington DC Magazine

Washington DC Magazine combines AI-assisted research and drafting with human editorial oversight. We believe in being upfront about that. This page explains exactly how our stories get made, what standards we hold them to, and who is accountable for them.

Who runs the magazine

Rodriquez Wright II is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Washington DC Magazine. He sets editorial direction, reviews coverage, and is personally accountable for the publication's standards and the integrity of every story we publish. Reach him at our Contact page.

How a WDCM story gets made

Most WDCM stories begin with AI-assisted research drawing on public reporting, official statements, government filings, court records, press releases, and primary documents. The AI does the heavy lifting of synthesis: pulling facts from multiple sources, identifying what's confirmed versus contested, and producing a structured draft.

That draft is then reviewed against our standards (below) before publication. Stories that don't meet the standards don't run.

Our editorial standards

1. Multiple primary sources

Every news story must draw from at least three independent primary sources. We don't republish a single outlet's reporting as our own.

2. Original synthesis, not rewriting

Our job is to connect facts in ways no single source does — not to paraphrase someone else's article. If a story doesn't add something to the reader's understanding, we don't publish it.

3. One unified WDCM voice

We don't imitate other publications or specific journalists. WDCM has its own editorial voice — concise, sourced, DC-rooted — and every story is written to fit it.

4. Honest attribution

Bylines on news stories read “WDCM Editorial” or “WDCM Research Desk” because those stories are produced by our editorial process, not individual reporters. When a story carries a personal byline, that person actually wrote it.

5. Sourcing and citations

We link to primary sources directly when possible. When we reference reporting from another publication, we credit it by name. We don't obscure where information came from.

6. Corrections in public

If we get something wrong, we fix it — visibly, with a dated correction note appended to the story. Our Editorial Policy has the full procedure.

What AI does — and what it doesn't

AI helps us with:

• Research across multiple sources at scale
• Synthesizing facts into a coherent draft
• Identifying gaps in sourcing before publication
• Copy editing and style consistency
• Headline testing

AI does not:

• Make editorial judgment calls about what we publish
• Invent quotes or attribute statements that weren't actually said
• Fabricate sources, statistics, or events
• Pose as a human journalist

If a story would require fabricating a quote, source, or fact to land — we don't run it. Period.

Why we're transparent about this

A lot of digital publications use AI quietly and pretend they don't. We think readers deserve to know how the journalism they're reading was made. The honesty also keeps us honest: if we're going to publicly commit to these standards, we have to actually meet them.

If you have questions about a specific story, our process, or want to flag something that doesn't meet the bar we've set here — contact us. Rod reads it.

Related

• About the Editor-in-Chief
• Editorial Policy
• Contact the editor
• About Washington DC Magazine