Sources
Every page on CivicMaple starts with a simple question: what does a person actually need to know about this topic? To answer that honestly, I rely on a small set of source types, used in a deliberate order. I’m Emily Grant, and I’ve spent nine years as a research editor and fact-checker in Ottawa. That work taught me that a quick answer is only as good as the evidence behind it.
Source hierarchy
When I build a page, I consult sources in this order:
- Primary documents — official records, court transcripts, government data, and original interviews. These come first because they are closest to the event or fact itself.
- Reputable secondary reporting — work from established news organizations, academic journals, and institutional publications. I use these to confirm and contextualize what the primary sources show.
- Reference works — encyclopedias, dictionaries, and databases, but only to verify names, dates, and spellings, not to form the core of a page.
This order mirrors what I do in my daily work translating municipal data for public boards. It keeps the answer grounded, and it means I can usually trace any claim back to something checkable.
What I exclude, and why
Some sources never make it onto CivicMaple. I exclude anonymous blogs, unverified social media posts, and content that is clearly promotional or partisan. The reason is practical: those sources rarely hold up under scrutiny, and a reader deserves better than a guess dressed up as fact. I also steer clear of celebrity gossip and political commentary, even when a topic seems to invite it. For example, a page about People focuses on verifiable biographical details, not tabloid speculation. The same rule applies to Entertainment and History entries — I stick to what can be documented.
How outbound links are handled
When I link to an external source, I choose it for one reason: it helps you verify the claim or go deeper. I do not use affiliate links, and I never link to a page just to boost its traffic. Each outbound link is checked at the time of writing, and I note the date of access in my internal records so I can revisit it later. If a link goes dead, I fix it or remove it during my regular review cycle, which is part of the broader method I follow for every page.
CivicMaple runs without ads or tracking, and it is funded by nothing but time and coffee. If you spot a source that seems off, or if you have a question about a specific page, you can reach me directly at emily@civicmaple.com. I read every message, and corrections are handled transparently on the corrections page. For more on how I decide what to cover, the scope page explains the site’s boundaries in detail.