Editorial Policy

1. Our Editorial Mission

HeyMariner exists because maritime professionals — officers on watch, engineers in the engine room, harbour masters coordinating traffic, port agents processing vessel arrivals — deserve a knowledge platform that understands the realities of their work. There is an enormous difference between content written about the sea by people who have never sailed and content written by professionals whose careers depend on the accuracy of every checklist, regulation, and procedure they consult. We are firmly in the second camp.

Our editorial mission is to produce the highest-quality maritime intelligence available on the open internet: factually rigorous, operationally relevant, and completely honest about the limits of what we know. We publish for the officer preparing for a pre-arrival port-state control inspection, for the cadet trying to understand the relationship between SOLAS Chapter II-2 and the FSS Code, for the chief engineer diagnosing a MARPOL-compliance question about oily water separators, and for the shipping executive who needs a concise, accurate summary of new IMO amendments before they enter force. Every editorial decision we make is oriented around the needs of these readers.

Maritime information has real-world safety consequences. An error in a regulatory guide could lead to a port-state control detention. A misquoted safety procedure could put crew at risk. A wrong figure in a weather-routing piece could contribute to a navigation incident. We hold our content to the highest possible standard because of the environment in which it will be used — often at sea, often under time pressure, often by a single professional who must make a rapid judgment call based on what they have read.

We also recognise that maritime intelligence encompasses a wide range of disciplines — nautical science, marine engineering, cargo operations, maritime law, port logistics, environmental compliance, seafarer welfare, and more — and that no small team can be expert in all of them. Our solution is a large and diverse editorial team drawn from across these disciplines, supplemented by an expert review network and a rigorous source-verification process. The result is content that reflects real professional knowledge rather than desk research alone.

2. Editorial Team Composition

HeyMariner's editorial team is built around a core of certificated maritime professionals with substantial seagoing experience. We do not employ generalist journalists to cover specialist maritime topics. Every member of our core team holds a relevant professional qualification and has direct operational experience in the areas they cover.

2.1 Master Mariners

Our team includes nine Master Mariners holding STCW Class I certificates of competency. Their collective experience spans tanker operations (crude, chemical, LPG, and LNG), bulk carrier passages, container vessel operations, general cargo, RoRo, and passenger ships. Areas of editorial specialisation among this group include passage planning and ECDIS navigation, COLREG interpretation, bridge resource management, ISM Code implementation, port-state control preparation, flag-state survey procedures, formal safety assessment, and maritime incident investigation. Several of our Masters have served as designated persons (DPs) under the ISM Code and bring an acute understanding of the gap between regulation as written and regulation as implemented aboard ship.

2.2 Chief Engineers

Five Chief Engineers contribute to HeyMariner's technical editorial output. Their experience covers two-stroke and four-stroke main engine operations, auxiliary machinery, electrical systems, MARPOL Annex VI compliance (NOx, SOx, and the Energy Efficiency Management Plan), oily water separator operation and record-keeping, ballast water treatment systems, and planned maintenance systems. Our Chief Engineers are the authoritative voice for all engine-room-related content, including machinery failure analysis, fuel oil management, and the engineering implications of alternative fuels such as LNG, methanol, and ammonia.

2.3 Deck Officers

Seventeen officers holding STCW OOW certifications at various grades — including Chief Officers and those qualified to Officer of the Watch level on vessels of 500 GT and above — contribute to operational content covering cargo operations, stability calculations, mooring and anchoring procedures, GMDSS communications, meteorology and oceanography, ice navigation, piracy and maritime security (ISPS Code), and watchkeeping standards. This group ensures that the operational perspective of watch officers is represented in how we frame procedural and safety content.

2.4 Marine Engineers

Thirteen engineers at various ranks — including Second Engineers, Third Engineers, and those qualified as Officer of the Watch in the engine room — contribute to content covering propulsion machinery, bilge and ballast systems, refrigeration plant, hydraulic systems, fire detection and suppression systems, and engineering watchkeeping. Their contributions ensure that technical articles are grounded in practical engine-room reality rather than theoretical engineering alone.

2.5 Volunteer Contributors and Subject-Matter Specialists

In addition to our core team, HeyMariner works with a network of volunteer contributors drawn from across the maritime industry. These individuals include port captains and harbour masters, marine surveyors, ship brokers, maritime lawyers, environmental compliance specialists, maritime training instructors, and seafarer welfare advocates. Volunteer contributors are vetted for relevant credentials before they are permitted to contribute content, and all volunteer content undergoes the same editorial review process applied to content from the core team. Volunteers are acknowledged for their contributions and their credentials are disclosed.

3. Editorial Independence

HeyMariner's editorial team operates independently of its commercial, advertising, sponsorship, and business development functions. The editorial director has sole authority over what topics are covered, what positions are taken in editorial and opinion content, what sources are cited, and what conclusions our content reaches. No advertiser, commercial partner, investor, flag state, port authority, shipping company, classification society, trade organisation, or any other external party may direct, influence, or veto editorial content.

This principle is not merely aspirational — it is operationally enforced. The editorial team and the commercial team operate under separate reporting lines. Commercial staff do not attend editorial planning meetings. Editors are not informed of the identity of active advertisers as a routine matter, and advertising revenues are not allocated in ways that create incentives for editorial favouritism. Editors who receive approaches from commercial parties seeking to influence editorial content are required to report those approaches to the editorial director, and we maintain a log of such approaches.

All members of the editorial team and all contributing authors are required to declare potential conflicts of interest before working on content that could intersect with their professional affiliations, financial interests, or personal relationships. Where a conflict of interest is declared, the editorial director will determine whether the conflict can be adequately disclosed or whether the work should be assigned to another author or reviewer with no such conflict. Conflict disclosures are retained internally and, where material, are disclosed to readers within the published content.

4. Content Categories

HeyMariner publishes across seven primary content categories. Each category has specific editorial standards and review requirements in addition to the baseline standards that apply to all content.

4.1 Maritime Wiki

The Maritime Wiki covers the geographic and physical foundations of maritime operations: the world's oceans, seas, gulfs, straits, bays, channels, and significant maritime geographic features. Entries are encyclopaedic in nature and cover hydrographic characteristics, prevailing current and meteorological conditions, traffic separation schemes, historically significant passages, and navigational hazards. Wiki content is written to be accurate, durable, and useful for passage planning. It is reviewed by Masters with relevant ocean experience and is cross-referenced against official hydrographic publications including those of UKHO, NOAA, and national hydrographic offices.

4.2 Technical Articles

Technical articles cover the operational disciplines of seamanship: navigation methods and instruments, cargo operations by commodity type, stability and load management, mooring and anchoring procedures, engine room systems, maintenance procedures, and the practical application of safety equipment. Technical articles are written by certificated officers or engineers with direct experience of the subject matter and are reviewed by a qualified peer before publication. Articles involving safety-critical procedures — such as enclosed space entry, hot work, or emergency drills — are reviewed with particular care against SOLAS and company SMS requirements.

4.3 Regulatory Guides

Regulatory guides explain the requirements of international maritime instruments — primarily SOLAS, MARPOL, STCW, the MLC 2006, COLREG, and the ISPS Code — as well as the codes, guidelines, and circulars that implement those instruments in practice. Regulatory guides are among our most technically demanding content, and they carry our highest level of editorial scrutiny. Every regulatory guide specifies the version and amendment cycle of the instrument being cited, distinguishes between mandatory convention requirements and non-mandatory guidance, and notes where flag state implementation varies from the IMO baseline. Regulatory guides are reviewed by an editor who has direct professional experience applying the regulation in question and are cross-referenced against the text of the official IMO instrument, GISIS records, and relevant MSC or MEPC circulars.

4.4 Safety Notices and Alerts

Safety notices and alerts are time-sensitive communications about hazards, deficiencies, or near-miss incidents that are relevant to the safety of vessels, crew, or cargo. They are sourced from official publications including IMO Marine Safety Committee Circulars, flag state notices to mariners, MAIB reports, NTSB marine investigations, port-state control detention notices, and class society safety bulletins. HeyMariner's safety notices are clearly labelled as derived from named official sources, are published as rapidly as possible following the release of the primary source, and are reviewed for accuracy by a qualified member of our editorial team. Safety notices are never held pending commercial review or used as advertising vehicles.

4.5 Port Intelligence

Port intelligence covers the operational information a vessel's officer or shipping company needs when calling at or planning a call at a port: berthing arrangements, draft restrictions, tidal windows, pilotage requirements, port health and customs procedures, local agent contacts, port-specific PSC priorities, turnaround times, and any current local hazards or construction. Port intelligence is notoriously perishable, and we maintain update schedules for high-traffic ports to ensure currency. Port intelligence is cross-referenced against official port authority publications, BIMCO port guides, and, where available, direct input from port agents or pilots with first-hand recent experience.

4.6 Maritime News

Maritime news covers significant events in the global shipping industry: major incidents and casualties, IMO assembly and committee decisions, significant regulatory changes, major port developments, fleet trends, piracy and maritime security incidents, and industry commercial news. News articles are written to conventional journalistic standards of accuracy, fairness, and source identification. We do not republish press releases verbatim as news; news articles are independently reported and verified. Opinion is clearly distinguished from news reporting.

4.7 Editorials and Opinion

Editorials and opinion pieces are clearly labelled as such and represent the views of the named author or, in the case of unsigned editorials, the editorial board of HeyMariner. Opinion pieces may advocate positions on maritime policy, regulatory reform, industry practices, or seafarer welfare without being balanced by counter-argument in the same piece. However, factual claims within opinion pieces are held to the same accuracy standards as all other content. The distinction between a factual claim and an expression of opinion is clearly maintained.

5. Content Standards and Quality Control

All content published on HeyMariner — regardless of category, author, or format — must meet the following baseline standards before publication:

• Every factual claim must be substantiated by an identified primary source, peer-reviewed research, an official regulatory document, or a named subject-matter expert. Claims that cannot be verified are either removed or clearly qualified as uncertain.
• Regulatory information must be verified against the current version of the applicable instrument. Where we cite older versions or transitional provisions, we make the version explicitly clear.
• Headlines and introductory text must accurately represent the content that follows. We do not use sensationalist, misleading, or clickbait framing for maritime content where accuracy is a safety matter.
• Content must distinguish clearly between what is legally required, what is recommended best practice, and what is the author's professional opinion.
• Safety-critical content — including emergency procedures, life-saving appliance guidance, GMDSS procedures, and cargo segregation requirements — receives an additional layer of review by a qualified expert before publication.
• Photographs, charts, and diagrams must be either original, properly licensed, or in the public domain. Image captions must accurately describe the content of the image.
• Content is written in plain, professional English accessible to the range of maritime professionals who will use it. Technical language is used where precision requires it and is explained where it may not be familiar to all readers.
• Commercial entities mentioned in editorial content are identified by their full trading name. We do not use anonymous references to organisations without editorial justification.

Quality control is maintained through a structured editorial workflow. Every piece of content passes through at least two editorial stages — author drafting and editor review — before publication. Safety-critical or regulatory content passes through three stages, with a qualified expert review added between the author and the final editorial gate.

6. Fact-Checking Process

HeyMariner operates a structured fact-checking process for all substantive editorial content. This is not a light-touch editorial pass — it is a deliberate, documented procedure applied before any piece of content is cleared for publication.

Authors are required to submit draft content with source citations for all factual claims. Where a claim is based on an author's professional knowledge rather than a documentable external source, it must be flagged as such so that the editor can assess whether independent verification is needed. Citations are reviewed by the assigning editor against the identified sources. For regulatory content, the primary verification step involves reading the cited provisions in the official IMO instrument — not a secondary summary or industry commentary — and confirming that the content accurately reflects what the instrument actually says.

For regulatory content, our standard cross-referencing sources are: the IMO's official publication database and circular lists; GISIS (Global Integrated Shipping Information System) records of instrument ratification status and flag state implementation; MSC and MEPC circular indices; the text of IMO conventions and mandatory codes as published on the IMO website; BIMCO guidelines and recommended clauses; and, where relevant, port state control MOU annual reports (Paris MOU, Tokyo MOU, Indian Ocean MOU, USCG, etc.).

Statistical data — including shipping casualty statistics, port throughput figures, fleet composition data, and emissions measurements — is verified against the most recent published datasets from authoritative sources including the IMO, UNCTAD Review of Maritime Transport, EMSA Annual Overview of Marine Casualties, and relevant flag state authority publications. Where data sources conflict, we disclose the discrepancy and explain our editorial judgment in selecting the figure used.

Technical claims about equipment, machinery, or procedures are verified against manufacturers' manuals, class society survey requirements, or the relevant SOLAS or MARPOL technical standards where applicable. We do not rely on informal industry convention or oral tradition for technical facts that can be checked against an authoritative source.

7. Source Hierarchy

HeyMariner operates a clear hierarchy of source types, which guides both the drafting and fact-checking processes:

7.1 Primary Sources

Primary sources are official, authoritative documents produced by the bodies responsible for maritime regulation, safety, and standards. These include: International Maritime Organization (IMO) conventions, codes, circulars, and publications; Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO) standard contracts, guidelines, and documentary publications; International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) guides and manuals; International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) standards and inspection records; national maritime administrations and flag state authorities; port authority notices to mariners and port regulations; and the official publications of classification societies (DNV, Lloyd's Register, Bureau Veritas, ABS, ClassNK, etc.) in relation to their own rules and survey requirements. Primary sources are always preferred. Where a primary source exists, content must be grounded in it.

7.2 Secondary Sources

Secondary sources include the research publications and guidance produced by classification societies and recognized maritime research organisations (such as the Nautical Institute, IALA, and INTERCARGO), peer-reviewed maritime and engineering journals, official investigation reports from bodies such as the UK MAIB, the US NTSB Marine Division, and equivalent national bodies, and UNCTAD and World Bank maritime transport statistics. Secondary sources are used to contextualise and analyse primary source material.

7.3 Tertiary Sources

Tertiary sources include the maritime trade press (Lloyd's List, TradeWinds, Maritime Executive, Splash247, and similar publications) and general business and news media. Tertiary sources may be cited for news reporting and commercial context, but factual claims that originate in tertiary sources are verified against primary sources before being repeated in HeyMariner content. We do not treat maritime trade press reports as authoritative for regulatory or technical claims without independent verification.

8. Expert Review Process

All content addressing operational, technical, safety, or regulatory matters is reviewed by a qualified expert before publication. The expert reviewer is selected based on the specific subject matter of the content. We do not assign a deck officer to review engineering content or ask a navigation specialist to assess MARPOL compliance articles.

Our expert review network includes active Masters and Chief Engineers with vessels currently under their command, marine surveyors with classification society or flag state backgrounds, port-state control officers and designated persons, GMDSS radio officers, maritime lawyers with experience in flag state and port state enforcement, cargo superintendents, and IMO delegates and technical experts. Expert reviewers are compensated for their time. They are not offered inducements to provide favourable reviews.

The expert review process is advisory: reviewers identify factual errors, flag ambiguities, and note where the content may not reflect current operational practice. The final editorial decision on all matters of language, framing, structure, and publication rests with the editorial team. Where an expert reviewer disagrees with a conclusion in a piece — rather than with a factual claim — the editorial team may publish both the original conclusion and the expert's dissenting view. Expert reviewers are identified by their credentials and relevant affiliations in the published content where their review was a material part of the editorial process.

9. Currency and Updates Policy

Maritime regulation changes continuously. IMO Assembly sessions, MSC and MEPC committee meetings, and ongoing diplomatic conferences produce new instruments, amendments, circulars, and guidance at a pace that requires active content management. Similarly, port regulations, tidal data, and traffic separation schemes are subject to regular revision. HeyMariner operates structured content review schedules to keep our content current.

Regulatory guides covering major instruments (SOLAS, MARPOL, STCW, MLC) are reviewed and updated within sixty days of any relevant IMO MSC or MEPC decision. Safety notices are updated immediately when the underlying official notice is superseded or corrected. Port intelligence for major commercial ports is reviewed at least quarterly, with high-traffic ports reviewed monthly where operationally significant changes are common. Maritime Wiki entries are reviewed annually as a baseline, with interim updates triggered by significant hydrographic or regulatory developments.

Every piece of content on HeyMariner carries a "last reviewed" or "last updated" date, displayed prominently. When content is updated following a regulatory change, the update is dated and described in a version note at the foot of the article. We do not silently update regulatory content in a way that could mislead readers about the currency of what they are reading.

10. Corrections and Retractions Policy

HeyMariner is committed to correcting errors promptly and transparently. If an error is identified — by a reader, a contributor, an expert reviewer, or any member of our team — we investigate as a priority and publish a correction as quickly as the verification process allows.

Minor errors — typographical mistakes, grammatical errors, formatting problems that do not affect meaning — are corrected silently, without a correction notice. Substantive factual errors are corrected with a clearly dated correction notice that identifies what was incorrect and what the correct information is. The correction notice is appended to the article and, for significant errors, also displayed at the top of the article for a period of thirty days. We do not delete articles to avoid accountability. For errors in safety-critical content — emergency procedures, life-saving appliance guidance, MARPOL record-keeping, or passage safety information — we publish the correction as an urgent notice and route it through the same distribution channels used for safety alerts.

Retractions — full withdrawal of a piece of content — are reserved for situations where an article contains errors so fundamental that correction is insufficient to render it reliable, or where content was published that should never have been published due to a process failure. Retractions are published as explicit notices with an explanation of the reason for the retraction. The retracted article remains accessible in archive form with the retraction notice clearly displayed.

To report an error, contact us at heymariner@gmail.com with the article URL and a clear description of the error and, where possible, a reference to the correct information. We acknowledge correction requests within two business days.

11. Contributor Guidelines

HeyMariner welcomes contributions from qualified maritime professionals. Contributions may take the form of technical articles, regulatory analysis, operational guides, opinion pieces, port intelligence, or safety observations. All contributors must meet the following baseline requirements before their content can be considered for publication.

Contributors must hold a relevant maritime professional qualification or demonstrate equivalent expertise through their professional history. We do not accept content from writers without maritime credentials for technical, operational, or regulatory content. Academic and legal contributors may contribute in their specific areas of expertise without requiring seagoing certificates. All contributors are required to complete a contributor profile disclosing their qualifications, current employer or employer category, and any potential conflicts of interest relevant to the content they propose to submit. This profile is reviewed by the editorial team before a contributor is approved.

Submitted content must be original work. We do not accept content that has been substantially published elsewhere without disclosure. Where content draws on an author's previous work or professional publications, this should be disclosed at submission. Content must not contain material that infringes the intellectual property rights of third parties, is defamatory, or breaches any applicable laws. All submitted content is subject to the same editorial review process as content commissioned from the core team, including fact-checking, expert review where required, and sub-editing.

Accepted contributors retain moral rights in their work but grant HeyMariner a non-exclusive licence to publish, archive, and distribute the content in perpetuity across all HeyMariner platforms and channels. Contributors who wish to withdraw previously published content may make a request to the editorial team, which will be considered on a case-by-case basis, having regard to the continuing operational relevance of the material.

12. Advertising and Commercial Influence Separation

The commercial and advertising operations of HeyMariner are strictly separated from its editorial operations. This separation is structural, not merely procedural. Advertisers and commercial partners have no right to request, review, approve, or veto editorial content. The editorial team does not receive information about specific advertiser relationships as a routine matter. Advertising revenues are not tracked or reported in ways that create editorial incentives to favour specific advertisers or commercial sectors.

Where a company that advertises on HeyMariner is the subject of editorial coverage — for example, if a shipping company that advertises in our platform is involved in a significant maritime incident — the editorial team will cover that story in exactly the same way it would cover the story if the company were not an advertiser. If any external pressure is applied to suppress or alter such coverage, it will be declined, and the attempt may itself be reported. The editorial team has the authority to decline advertising from entities whose conduct conflicts with HeyMariner's ethical standards, regardless of any commercial agreements.

13. Affiliate and Sponsored Content Disclosure

HeyMariner publishes sponsored content — paid content produced in partnership with commercial sponsors — as a source of platform revenue. All sponsored content is clearly and prominently labelled as such before the reader encounters the content. Labels used include "Sponsored," "Paid Partnership," "Advertiser Feature," and "Brought to you by [Company Name]." These labels appear above the headline of sponsored articles and are displayed in a visually distinct style.

Sponsored content on HeyMariner is subject to the same factual accuracy standards as editorial content. Sponsors do not have the right to make false claims, mislead readers about safety matters, or misrepresent their regulatory compliance status. The editorial team reviews all sponsored content and may require revisions before publication. Sponsors may review sponsored content for factual accuracy; they may not require the removal of accurate information or the inclusion of unsubstantiated claims.

Where HeyMariner uses affiliate links — links that generate a referral commission if a user subsequently makes a purchase — these links are disclosed within the content where they appear, using language such as "This link is an affiliate link. HeyMariner may earn a commission if you purchase through this link, at no additional cost to you." Affiliate relationships are disclosed regardless of whether we believe the reader is likely to notice or care.

14. External Contributors and Guest Authors

HeyMariner welcomes guest contributions from maritime professionals, academics, and industry experts who wish to share their knowledge with the maritime community. Guest authors are identified clearly in the published content, with their credentials, current role, and institutional affiliation (if any) disclosed. This information allows readers to assess the expertise and perspective of the guest author.

Guest content does not represent the official editorial position of HeyMariner. Where a guest author expresses views that differ from those of HeyMariner's editorial team, this may be noted in an editorial foreword or afterword. Guest authors are responsible for the accuracy of the professional and biographical information they provide. All guest content undergoes the same editorial review and fact-checking process as internally commissioned content.

Port authorities, shipping companies, classification societies, trade organisations, and similar institutions may submit content for consideration as contributed content. Contributed institutional content is labelled clearly as such and is distinguished from HeyMariner's independent editorial content. Contributed institutional content is subject to editorial review for accuracy and compliance with our content standards, but does not carry HeyMariner's editorial endorsement.

15. Social Media Policy

HeyMariner maintains official social media accounts on Facebook (facebook.com/Heymariner), Instagram (instagram.com/heymariner), and LinkedIn (linkedin.com/organisation/heymariner). These accounts are managed by designated members of the editorial and communications team. Content published through these channels is subject to the same accuracy and editorial standards as content published on the HeyMariner platform.

Social media posts that link to or summarise HeyMariner content must accurately represent the content they reference. We do not use misleading or sensationalist language in social media posts to drive traffic. Sponsored or commercially motivated social media posts are disclosed in accordance with applicable advertising standards, using labels such as "#ad" or "#sponsored" as appropriate.

Members of the HeyMariner editorial team who maintain personal social media accounts are expected to exercise professional judgment in how they discuss HeyMariner content, the maritime industry, and subjects that could be attributed to HeyMariner. They are not required to disclose their HeyMariner affiliation on personal accounts, but where they discuss maritime topics in a professional context, they should make clear whether they are speaking in a personal capacity or as a representative of HeyMariner.

16. Embargo and Pre-publication Policy

HeyMariner respects embargoes applied to official maritime publications and regulatory decisions. Where the IMO, a flag state administration, a classification society, or another authoritative source provides content under an embargo with a clearly stated embargo date and time, we will honour the embargo. Embargo details are recorded internally, and editorial staff are instructed not to publish embargoed content before the agreed release time.

We do not accept embargoes that are applied selectively to disadvantage competitor publications. If an embargo condition appears designed to give commercial advantage to one outlet over another rather than to manage orderly information release, we reserve the right to decline the embargo or to publish the information without the embargo constraint, having regard to the public interest. Advance access to official publications under standard media embargo arrangements is accepted on the basis that the embargo is applied uniformly to all media recipients.

17. Transparency and Accountability

HeyMariner is committed to transparency about how we work. This editorial policy is published in full and is accessible from all pages of the platform. We do not operate under a confidential editorial policy. Changes to this policy are noted with a revision date and a summary of what has changed.

We publish information about our editorial team's composition, including the professional credentials of our core team members, in our "About" section and in our contributor directory. We disclose commercial relationships that could affect editorial content. We log and retain internal records of editorial decisions on contentious or sensitive topics. We engage seriously with complaints about our editorial standards and report annually on the corrections and complaints we have received.

HeyMariner does not accept anonymous tip-offs as a basis for publication without independent verification. Where we receive information from a confidential source, we investigate it independently before publication and do not identify the source. We protect the confidentiality of sources who provide information in good faith and under a genuine expectation of confidentiality.

18. Contact the Editorial Team

We welcome feedback on our editorial standards, corrections requests, contributor applications, and inquiries about editorial policy. Please contact us through any of the following channels: