Editor’s Note: Credence

Dear Readers,

First, let me start off by saying that I love the comments and intelligent interaction that takes place on this site. I am pleased to see what originally started off as a source of information about Harlem growing into an on-line community that is now extending beyond the Internet.

With that said, I would like to direct some of our newer readers to the ABOUT section so that you can come to know the mission and policy of this site. Readers will occasionally question the journalistic integrity of the information that we post of UPTOWNflavor. I have no problem with that because it shows that you are someone with an inquiring mind. Our policy about the information that we provide is clearly stated on the ABOUT page. To summarize, this is not a news agency, nor do we claim to be. Some of our information comes from factual sources and when it does we cite the source. Other information is via word of mouth, rumors or overheard conversations. Again, we will disclose the fact that the information was obtain through said source. Typically, if something is questionable I will personally take the time to do a little digging and see what comes up. Of course the Internet is the not the end all source for information (gasp!) so I will make a some phone calls, send emails or go in person to ask questions. I am proud to say that we are probably a lot more reliable than some of your favorite so-called news sources. Suffice it to say that fact checking is quickly becoming a lost art.

I say all of this to say that I am only going to address this issue one time, and in the future I will simply refer you to the handy ABOUT section for further clarification about the validity of the information posted on this site. UPTOWNflavor is a source of information that is here for you to take and process however you choose. If you take it at face value, trusting that I am not posting false information…great! If you decide to do further investigation on your own that’s even better, especially if you come back and share what you dug up. Or you can simply accept the fact that the reason it was important to start a site like this was because Harlem is often blatantly overlooked. There are too many major accomplishments and tragic incidents in Harlem that are not being reported thoroughly or they are being reported with a negative slant by the “major” news agencies. Harlemites can either sit around being mad that “they” didn’t feel the issue was important enough to put on the 10 o’clock news or publish in the police blotter of the newspaper, or we can be proactive and do it ourselves. I think that UPTOWNflavor has done a good job of taking on the latter solution.

I appreciate the reader submissions, tips and rumors. Keep them coming! Enjoy your holiday weekend. We’ll be here when you get back. If you need to contact me please feel free to email dbell[at]uptownflavor[dot]com.

Related: Letter from the editor