Northern Focus publishes sponsored content as a clearly labelled, paid-for service that provides organisations, brands or governments with a platform to share their messages with our audience. Every sponsored piece is visually distinguished from editorial content, reviewed for compliance with our standards and never influences our independent news reporting.
What is sponsored content on Northern Focus?
Sponsored content is material created by or on behalf of an advertiser, partner or sponsor and published on northernfocus.org in exchange for a fee. It may include articles, videos, infographics or interactive features. The sponsor has input into the topic and messaging, but Northern Focus retains final approval to ensure the content is not misleading, does not violate our policies and is clearly identified as promotional.
How do we label sponsored content?
Every sponsored piece carries a visible “Sponsored” label at the top of the page, immediately below the headline and above the body text. The label appears in a distinct colour and font weight so readers can instantly distinguish sponsored material from independent journalism. The same label is used in article previews, on category pages and in social-media posts linking to the content.
In addition, each sponsored article includes a short disclosure statement — for example, “This content was produced in partnership with [Sponsor Name]. Northern Focus’s editorial team reviewed it for accuracy and compliance with our policies.” This disclosure appears directly after the label and before the main text.
What is the difference between sponsored content and affiliate links?
Affiliate links are embedded in editorial or promotional content and generate a small commission for Northern Focus when a reader clicks through and makes a purchase. Those links are disclosed with a note such as “We may earn a commission if you buy through this link” and are never placed in sponsored content. Sponsored content, by contrast, involves a direct fee from a sponsor for the placement of a specific piece. Both are clearly labelled, but they are separate revenue streams governed by distinct rules. You can read our full disclosure at our advertising and affiliate disclosure page.
How do we maintain editorial independence?
Northern Beacon Media Inc., the Ontario corporation that owns Northern Focus, has a strict firewall between commercial relationships and editorial decision-making. No sponsor, advertiser or partner can influence our news coverage, the selection of stories, the framing of articles or the opinions expressed by our journalists. The Editor-in-Chief, Catherine Roy, has final authority over editorial standards and publication decisions. The Standards & Fact-Checking Lead, Andrew Leblanc, ensures that sponsored content undergoes the same source-verification and fact-checking process as editorial content, with the caveat that the topic and core message are provided by the sponsor. Our editorial policy and ownership and funding disclosure outline these safeguards in detail.
What you can expect from us
You can expect that every piece of sponsored content on Northern Focus is clearly labelled, fact-checked for accuracy and reviewed by a human editor before publication. You can expect that a sponsor’s payment never buys a favourable news story, a change to an existing article or the suppression of editorial coverage. You can expect that our newsroom remains independent, and that any questions or complaints about sponsored content will be handled promptly by the same team that handles editorial corrections — outlined in our corrections policy and complaints procedure.
How can you submit sponsored content or partnership inquiries?
Businesses, organisations and government entities interested in sponsoring content on Northern Focus should email our commercial team at sponsored@northernfocus.org. Please include a brief description of your proposed topic, target audience and budget range. Our partnerships team will respond with a proposal that outlines pricing, placement options, disclosure requirements and editorial-review milestones. For general advertising or partnership questions, visit our contact page.
Questions or concerns?
If you believe a piece of sponsored content is misleading, improperly labelled or violates our policies, please contact our editorial team at editorial@northernfocus.org or our Standards & Fact-Checking Lead directly. We treat all concerns seriously and will review the material in line with our fact-checking policy and published corrections procedure. For complaints about commercial practices that are not editorial in nature, reach out to info@northernfocus.org and we will direct your message to the appropriate department.