Membership standards

Code of Ethics

Members must act in an honest, forthright and professional manner, both in journalistic endeavors and in business matters. Honesty and integrity should be maintained not only in works created, but also in dealings with others in the travel profession, clients, suppliers and those in related fields.
Content should be precise, factual, and unbiased. If expressing a personal opinion, it should be clearly stated as such. Members should remain objective and relevant whenever possible.
No member should publish information about a subject about which they lack first-hand knowledge unless the member uses sources that are believed reliable and material is fact-checked to the best of their ability.
Plagiarism or representation of first-hand knowledge when there has been none, or fraudulent use of a byline, is unethical conduct and cause for removal from the association. Further, no NATJA member should permit their byline to appear as sole author on work they have not produced, nor shall a member be listed as co-author of a work to which they have not contributed.
When photographs or editorial materials have been furnished by others, a member shall so advise the publisher so that credit may be properly attributed.

A member shall personally pay for all expenses incurred by that member that are personal or beyond the services voluntarily provided by the host.
No member shall offer or accept payment or courtesies in exchange for producing material about a subject that is contrary to their own professional appraisal. Members will neither seek nor accept preferential treatment that might be rendered because of the positions they hold.
Members who are or have been employed by or associated with a subject shall make all potential editors and/or publishers aware of their association prior to accepting an assignment relating to that subject.

Members may use artificial intelligence tools for research purposes only, including fact verification, background research, data gathering, and editorial organization. AI shall not be used to generate creative output — including but not limited to article drafts, travel narratives, destination descriptions, captions, or any content intended for publication under a member’s byline.
All published work submitted under a member’s byline must reflect that member’s original voice, firsthand experience, and independent creative judgment. Use of AI-generated text as a substitute for original writing is a violation of this Code and may be cause for removal from the association.
Members who use AI tools in their research process are encouraged to disclose such use to editors and publishers in accordance with the disclosure policies of the outlets to which they contribute.