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Coverage Area: As our tagline, “Read The Diplomat, Know the Asia-Pacific” suggests, The Diplomat covers news and analysis of current events in the Asia-Pacific, which we define as the vast territory stretching from the Central Asian states to the Pacific Island countries. We do not cover West Asia (the Middle East) or domestic U.S. politics. 

We will, however, consider articles focused on Asian states in the global context (for example: China in Africa or Latin America; India-Russia relations, etc.) as well as U.S. foreign policy in regard to Asia. 

Article Topics, Types & Lengths: The Diplomat publishes a variety of pieces, from original reporting to news analysis and commentary that address the full spectrum of topics from security to economics, domestic news in Asian countries to bilateral and multilateral maneuvering, as well as wider geopolitical trends. We are interested in covering the full breadth of reality in Asia. 

These articles broadly fall into two categories: blogs and features.

• Blogs: 600-1500 words, may be a summary of a recent news event, an analysis of an ongoing trend, an op-ed, or other such brief reports.
• Features: 1200-2000 words, generally includes original reporting or unique analysis. More in-depth than a blog.

We also consider original photo essays, interviews, and a limited volume of opinion pieces. We are open to creative ideas so pitch us and see!

Style: The Diplomat contains a multitude of styles and our editors strive to preserve the diverse voices of our authors. Nevertheless the following notes are necessary:

• We broadly follow Associated Press (AP) Style, with some in-house adaptations.
• We use American English spellings and language conventions.
• Hyperlink all relevant sources; do not send us articles with footnotes or endnotes. 
• Avoid using academic terminology and conventions, including literature review sections or phrases like “this author’s research…” or “in this article we will examine…” 
• Avoid using “we” or “our” when referring to any specific country. The Diplomat does not belong to or represent any particular country.

Graphics: We welcome images, graphs and charts, provided they are original. Do not include images, graphs, or charts taken from other publications, unless you have the appropriate copyright and permission to republish them. If your piece is accepted, we may ask that you provide the raw data for any charts or graphs, as we often recreate graphics in-house to match our publication style.

Compensation: While The Diplomat pays our regular contributors, we generally only pay guest authors for original feature articles. Please indicate clearly in your pitch that you are seeking compensation. Preference is given to original reporting and detailed analysis. Payment must be agreed upon with the editor before publication.

Regular contributors: We do not currently have any regular contributor positions open. When we do, they will be advertised.

Plagiarism: The Diplomat prides itself on publishing original work and takes plagiarism seriously. If you are found to have plagiarized, you will no longer be welcome to submit articles to us. We also do not accept articles generated by AI tools like ChatGPT.

Submitting to The Diplomat: All first-time guest authors should submit pitches or complete articles using the form below. Returning guest authors are also encouraged to use the form below.

Fill in the bio exactly as you would want it to appear on the website. 

If submitting a complete article, please include a Word document or the link to a Google Doc file. Do not send a PDF or a .pages document.

Do not simultaneously submit via this form and also email an editor directly. This creates confusion on our end. Failing to follow our “no double submission” policy may result in an automatic rejection.

What to Expect After Submitting: After you click submit below, you will receive an automated reply confirming receipt. 

Every submission is read by an editor, but because of the large volume of submissions we receive, we will contact you only if we are able to accept your piece. If you do not hear from us within three business days, we are not able to take your article and you are welcome to submit it to other publications.