At NowPublic, we have a different approach to news values than the traditional ones. Since our news is “Crowd-powered” we encourage contributors to consider just two, simple interlocking concepts instead: Completeness and Authenticity.

• Complete: Let's say you witness a car accident. You whip out your cell phone, and snap a picture. That's a good start, and maybe that's all you can do at the time. But there is a bunch of missing material. Where and when did it happen? Who was responsible, were others injured, why did it happen, what happened next, and etc. For more complex situations, it may require further research to make the story more complete. If the incident is newsworthy, that is, if this event is something new about something people will care about, these questions need to be asked and answered truthfully (see below). Did you try to get all sides of the story? If you haven't been able to answer all the questions, letting your readers know what's missing actually adds to the story's completeness because it's an invitation for others to join in.

• Authentic: Did you actually witness the event, or are you spreading gossip? If you are reporting on another story, did you enhance the original with new material? Is the material you’re using your own, or are you just cutting and pasting? If you based your story on someone else’s research, did you acknowledge it? Is your story true? Did you add something that was not there? If you have a bias, or opinion, did you divulge it – and, more importantly, did you still try to get all sides of the story?