Editorial Standards
Editorial approach
Curiosity, with accountability.
The Unread Signal covers developments in nuclear medicine, medical imaging, radiation science and nuclear history that deserve more attention than they have received. These are the standards every story is held to.
How we choose stories
Current Signals covers recent developments: studies, regulatory decisions, products and policy. Overlooked Signals covers older events and discoveries whose details are poorly known. We look for stories with consequences for patients, workers, practice or public understanding, and we skip stories we cannot support with documents.
How we source them
Primary records first. We work from original studies, regulatory records, court and government documents, and institutional announcements, and link to them in the text so readers can check our work.
Company claims are attributed. When the only evidence for a claim is the company or institution making it, we say so.
Independence is checked. Several articles repeating one press release are one source, not several. When outlets relay another outlet’s reporting, we credit the original.
Uncertainty stays visible. We separate established findings from interpretation and from open questions, and we do not treat the presence of radioactivity as proof of harm.
How AI is used
AI tools help with research, source checking and drafting. Every story passes several automated review steps that check its claims against the source material, and then goes to a human editor, who reviews, edits and decides whether it is published. AI output is never treated as evidence; every factual claim must trace to a cited source.
Who edits The Unread Signal
Every story is reviewed and edited before publication by a healthcare imaging professional with more than 25 years of experience in the field. That experience shapes which stories we pursue and how we judge the evidence behind them.
The Unread Index
Each story carries an Unread Index: a significance score out of 10 and a record of the other coverage we found. The scoring rules and their limits are explained on How the Unread Index Works.
Corrections
When we get something wrong, we fix it and say so. Substantive corrections, those that change a fact, figure, name, date or conclusion, are noted at the end of the story with the date and a short description of what changed. Minor fixes to spelling or style are made without a note.
To report an error, write to editor@theunreadsignal.com with the story and the passage in question. We review every report.
Articles are intended for information and professional discussion, not individualized medical advice. See our medical disclaimer.