Editorial Standards & Ethics

Investigating Abuse. Exposing Harm. Equipping the Church.

Truth is not the Church's enemy. Abuse is.

Wrestling Lions is an independent investigative journalism, education, and advocacy organization committed to exposing spiritual, sexual, financial, and institutional abuse within Christian churches, ministries, and religious organizations.

Our work currently focuses on allegations of abuse, leadership misconduct, and institutional accountability within the Assemblies of God and Chi Alpha Campus Ministries.

However, our mission extends beyond any single denomination or organization.

We believe Christian institutions should be places of safety, integrity, and accountability. When leaders misuse authority, institutions conceal wrongdoing, or vulnerable people are harmed, those failures deserve careful examination.

Our work is built around three principles:

RECOGNIZE. RESIST. REPORT.

  • Recognize: Educate individuals, families, and communities to identify spiritual manipulation, grooming, coercive control, exploitation, and institutional warning signs.

  • Resist: Equip people to challenge abusive leadership practices, establish healthy boundaries, exercise discernment, and refuse participation in harmful systems.

  • Report: Encourage responsible reporting of suspected abuse to appropriate civil authorities, institutional oversight bodies, and other relevant organizations.

Our investigative journalism supports this mission by documenting allegations, examining evidence, identifying institutional failures, and providing the public with information necessary to make informed decisions.

1. Our Commitment to Truth

Wrestling Lions is committed to accurate, fair, and evidence-based reporting.

We recognize that allegations involving sexual misconduct, spiritual abuse, financial wrongdoing, and institutional failures can have profound consequences for survivors, accused individuals, families, and communities.

For that reason, we strive to:

  • Verify significant factual claims before publication.

  • Seek original documentation and firsthand testimony whenever possible.

  • Corroborate important allegations through independent evidence.

  • Distinguish allegations from established facts.

  • Clearly identify opinions, analysis, and commentary.

  • Avoid presenting speculation as fact.

  • Provide relevant context and accurately represent opposing evidence.

  • Update reporting when significant new information becomes available.

Our convictions may determine what we investigate. They do not determine what the evidence proves.

We will not knowingly publish false or misleading information to advance our mission.

2. Investigative Reporting Standards

Our investigations may involve interviews, public records, legal documents, institutional communications, photographs, videos, and other relevant evidence.

Before publishing significant allegations, we seek to establish:

  1. What specifically is being alleged?

  2. Who has firsthand knowledge?

  3. What documentation supports the allegation?

  4. What independent corroboration exists?

  5. What relevant evidence contradicts or complicates the allegation?

  6. Has the individual or institution been given a reasonable opportunity to respond?

  7. Does publication serve a legitimate public interest?

We recognize that a single witness may provide important information, but we evaluate its reliability, context, and corroboration before deciding whether publication is justified.

We do not equate allegations with findings of guilt.

Likewise, institutional denials do not automatically invalidate documented evidence.

3. Protecting Survivors and Confidential Sources

Wrestling Lions recognizes that survivors, whistleblowers, witnesses, and former ministry members may face significant personal, professional, spiritual, or relational consequences when speaking publicly.

We take those concerns seriously.

Respecting Anonymity

Individuals who contact Wrestling Lions may request that their identities not be published.

Requests for anonymity will be evaluated based on safety, potential retaliation, the public interest, and the reliability of the information provided.

Before agreeing to confidentiality, we seek to establish a mutual understanding of how the information may be used.

When anonymity is granted, we will take reasonable steps to protect identifying information.

However, anonymity does not eliminate the need for verification.

We will not knowingly use anonymous allegations to make unsupported accusations.

Confidentiality Limitations

Wrestling Lions will not promise absolute confidentiality, immunity from legal proceedings, or protection from every form of identification.

Legal demands, security breaches, identifying details within evidence, and other circumstances may create risks beyond our control.

We encourage sources to understand these limitations before sharing highly sensitive information.

Survivor Dignity

We strive to avoid unnecessary disclosure of private information, graphic details, or identifying characteristics that could expose survivors to additional harm.

We exercise heightened caution when reporting allegations involving minors or sexual exploitation.

Survivors are not required to make their identities public to have their experiences taken seriously.

At the same time, we independently evaluate information before publishing allegations as established facts.

Protecting survivors and pursuing truth are complementary responsibilities.

4. Fairness and the Right to Respond

Wrestling Lions believes that individuals and organizations facing significant allegations should ordinarily receive a meaningful opportunity to respond before publication.

We seek responses through reasonable and appropriate communication methods.

We accurately represent relevant responses and distinguish between confirmed facts, disputed claims, and unanswered questions.

A refusal to comment does not establish wrongdoing.

We do not grant individuals or institutions the authority to suppress accurate reporting simply because publication may be uncomfortable or damaging to their reputation.

5. Corrections, Clarifications, and Retractions

We cannot demand accountability from institutions while refusing accountability ourselves.

Wrestling Lions is committed to correcting material factual errors.

Corrections

When a material factual error is confirmed, we will correct the published content promptly and provide an appropriate explanation of the correction.

Clarifications

When reporting is technically accurate but potentially misleading or incomplete, we may publish a clarification.

Retractions

When central claims are demonstrated to be materially false or cannot be adequately supported, we will evaluate whether the reporting requires substantial revision, withdrawal, or retraction.

Retractions will be clearly identified and explained.

Requests for Corrections

Individuals may submit requests identifying the disputed statement and providing relevant supporting information.

We evaluate substantive requests based on evidence, accuracy, and fairness.

Disagreement with an article's conclusions does not, by itself, establish that a correction is necessary.

6. Editorial Independence

Wrestling Lions maintains editorial independence from the institutions and individuals it investigates.

We do not accept payments, favors, or other benefits in exchange for suppressing information or providing favorable coverage.

Donors, advertisers, and supporters do not receive editorial control over investigative findings.

We disclose significant conflicts of interest when relevant to our reporting.

Our commitment to accountability applies regardless of an individual's position, popularity, religious affiliation, or institutional influence.

7. Journalism, Commentary, and Advocacy

Wrestling Lions operates in three related but distinct areas.

Investigative Journalism

We examine allegations, gather documentation, interview relevant individuals, and publish evidence-based findings.

Education

We develop resources that help individuals recognize grooming, spiritual manipulation, coercive leadership, and other forms of abuse.

Advocacy

We advocate for survivor protection, institutional transparency, meaningful accountability, and reforms designed to prevent future harm.

We strive to distinguish factual reporting from opinion and advocacy.

Our advocacy does not excuse inaccurate reporting or the selective omission of material facts.

8. Ethical Use of Evidence

Photographs, recordings, screenshots, private communications, and other materials may contain sensitive information.

Before publishing such materials, we consider:

  • Authenticity and context.

  • Privacy and consent.

  • The public interest.

  • Potential harm to victims or uninvolved individuals.

  • Applicable legal restrictions.

  • Whether redaction or a written description would communicate the relevant facts without unnecessary exposure.

We do not knowingly alter evidence in ways that misrepresent its meaning.

When images or other materials are edited for privacy, clarity, or presentation, we will avoid changes that distort their evidentiary significance.

We recognize that possessing evidence does not automatically justify publishing or distributing it.

9. Responsible Reporting of Abuse

Wrestling Lions encourages individuals to report suspected criminal conduct to appropriate law enforcement authorities.

Allegations involving children should be directed to the appropriate child-protection or law-enforcement authorities in accordance with applicable reporting laws.

Wrestling Lions is not a law-enforcement agency, court, or substitute for professional legal or mental-health services.

Submitting information to Wrestling Lions does not replace legally required reporting to civil authorities.

10. Accountability Begins With Us

Our commitment to accountability extends to our own reporting practices.

We welcome documented corrections, credible challenges to our findings, and evidence that may change our understanding of an investigation.

We believe truth is strengthened through careful examination, not protected through institutional silence.

Our purpose is not to manufacture scandals, settle personal grievances, or presume guilt.

Our purpose is to investigate credible concerns, establish what the evidence supports, and equip people to recognize, resist, and report abuse.

Our Guiding Conviction

The Church should never have to choose between protecting its reputation and protecting its people.

Protecting people is part of protecting the Church.

Wrestling Lions exists to ask difficult questions, examine evidence, challenge abusive systems, and help build communities where manipulation is recognized, wrongdoing is confronted, and abuse is reported.

Recognize. Resist. Report.

Wrestling Lions | Independent Investigative Journalism, Education & Advocacy