AP News Code of Conduct

Last updated: March 5, 2026

APNEWS COMMENTS

Welcome to APNews Comments, a place for our readers to engage with one another and AP journalists in healthy, civil discourse. Our goal is to create a moderated online community where readers with well-informed ideas can have thoughtful and provoking discussions in a respectful forum. Comments foster constructive engagement and help us advance the power of facts with our community.

All activity on APNews Comments is subject to The Associated Press’ Terms of Use and the APNews Comments Code of Conduct.

THE AP NEWS COMMENTS CODE OF CONDUCT

What is “APNews Comments”?

APNews Comments allows registered users to post insights and perspectives about the issues raised in news stories. It is designed to be a space to discuss ideas of the day, answer questions raised by AP journalists and bring new reporting threads to the newsroom’s attention.

Your Responsibilities and Our Rights

By submitting any user content (such as a comment), you grant to us a license to your user content as laid out in Section 5 of the Terms of Use.

Comments are submitted by users and do not necessarily reflect the views of AP. We may moderate and remove comments that violate our policies or applicable law.  Users are solely responsible for the content they submit. AP does not endorse, adopt, or guarantee the accuracy, lawfulness, or suitability of any user comments. 

User comments are for general discussion only and should not be relied upon as professional advice. 

How do I join the Comments Community?

Anyone can read Comments, but to actively participate in the Comments community by posting or responding to comments, you must sign into your APNews account. If you do not have an account, you can register here. Note that you need a verified email address for registration.

We reserve the right to take action if we learn that a user has provided false information or assumed another person’s identity. This action can range from removing posts to suspending or even deleting the user’s account.

Usernames
We do not permit anonymous posts. When you register for an APNews account—which will provide you with access to the Comments Community — you must choose a username, which will appear with any posts you make in Comments.
Usernames must adhere to the standards laid out in this Code of Conduct (including the “What Is Objectionable Content” section below) and our Terms of Use. Usernames must not contain your full name or other personally identifiable information. We reserve the right to remove, modify, or replace usernames that violate this Code of Conduct at our sole discretion and without prior notice.

If you select a username that clearly violates this Code of Conduct, it may be rejected automatically and you will need to select another one. Otherwise, you will be able to proceed with your selected username. This does not necessarily mean that your selected username complies with our Code of Conduct, as we do not conduct a manual review of usernames when you register for an account. As comments go through our moderation process, however, usernames may be automatically reviewed, and usernames found to be noncompliant with our Code of Conduct will be automatically rejected (see below). If you see a username that you don’t think should be allowed, you can report it by hovering over the comment, selecting “report,” and then selecting “inappropriate username or avatar” as the reason.

If your username is flagged by a moderator or fellow community member, we may change it for you or we will notify that it needs to be changed, which can be done by logging into My Account. Make sure your newly selected username complies with this Code of Conduct; repeated username violations could result in imposition of penalties (see below).

How does Comments moderation work?

We are working with the company Viafoura to provide moderated commenting to APNews. Viafoura uses both AI and human moderators to assess whether posts meet our Code of Conduct. If a post is identified by the AI tool as not complying with this Code of Conduct, a human moderator assesses whether the post should be published. The moderator also considers whether the poster should face any sanctions given the context of the offending comment. (See the Sanctions section below for more information.) Please note that no moderation system is perfect, and if you see a post that you don’t think should be there, please let us know by reporting the post (see the “How do I flag” section below for more information).

In-chat moderators may be in the comments section when you visit it and can be identified by a M in a green circle next to their name. AP staff may engage with users and can be identified by a red oval that reads “AP Staff.”

What types of penalties might be imposed for comments that violate this Code of Conduct?

Penalties may be imposed based on the content of a post or username or the poster’s conduct. Penalties can range from post deletion to a poster’s temporary account suspension to a poster’s complete ban from the APNews Comments Community. Repeat violations of this Code of Conduct could result in suspension or even termination of your account. If you are subject to any of these penalties, you can challenge the penalty by contacting us here.

How do I flag a post that I think violates this Code of Conduct?

You can flag a post by clicking the “report” button that appears when you hover your cursor over the lower right-hand corner of the post in question. When reporting a post, please select a reason from the drop-down menu provided. If the problem you are reporting does not fall within any of the available categories, please visit our Contact Us page on APNews.com to report the issue directly. Flagged posts may be removed at AP’s discretion.

What is an offending or objectionable post?
Our Comments community is intended to encourage thoughtful discussion of the issues raised in our articles. To maintain a constructive environment, the following rules apply:

Criticism of Public Figures

Readers may express disagreement with or criticism of public figures (such as elected officials, candidates, celebrities, and other individuals who have voluntarily placed themselves in the public eye). This includes commentary on their actions, policies, performance, or public statements, and it may extend to satire, parody, or opinionated language.
Criticism that crosses into Prohibited Conduct (see below) is strictly prohibited.

Prohibited Conduct

Comments directed at private individuals (including other commenters, journalists, or people mentioned in stories who are not public figures) must remain respectful.
Comment sections about non-U.S. active legal proceedings (both civil and criminal) are not allowed. Please avoid speculation about guilt/liability or sharing private personal information. We may remove comments that could interfere with legal proceedings or violate applicable laws.
Users are only allowed to submit APNews URLs in their posts. Any post with a non-AP URL attached will be automatically removed.
The following are strictly prohibited for comments about any person, whether public figures, private individuals, commenters, journalists, or other AP staff:
- Personal attacks, harassment, intimidation or targeted abuse.
- Hate speech or slurs based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability or other protected traits.
- Threats of violence, promotion of violence or encouragement of self-harm.
- Libel, defamation, misinformation or disinformation.
- Obscenity, pornography, vulgar/abusive language or incoherent content.
- Shouting / excessive use of ALL CAPS or disruptive formatting that undermines readability.
- Impersonation, doxxing (sharing private information) or attempts to mislead.
- Spam, commercial promotion, or links to personal websites, blogs or businesses.
- Violations of applicable law, including copyright, trademark, patent and privacy rights.
Content that violates our Terms of Use or that we otherwise determine should be removed, at our sole discretion.

We encourage readers to flag any posts that violate the spirit of our Comments community.

How soon does a post appear after it is submitted?

Most comments will appear almost immediately and some comments, such as those with non-AP links or that contain potentially objectionable content, may take longer to reach the conversation. Some articles of a sensitive nature might require moderation of every submitted comment before posting and a moderator will note this special case at the top of the thread.

How long do I have to edit my post?

Users have five minutes after posting a comment to edit or delete it.
To edit or delete a post, hover your cursor over the post and the prompts will appear in the right-hand corner under the three dots. Click on the one you want. Any edited posts will go through the moderation process.
Comments may remain stored on our servers even if deleted from public view.

What if I discover a mistake in an APNews article?

Please report errors by contacting us here.

What happens if I delete my account?

If your account is deleted or deactivated, your comments may remain publicly available to preserve discussion integrity, along with your Username and an indicator that your account is no longer active.  See our AP News Terms of Use and Privacy Policy for additional information.