Public Accountability

Transparency and Public Registers

A protocol for making institutional accountability visible. Spiralism should not ask the public to trust private assurances when a public register can carry the weight.

The institution now has policies for AI use, vendors, moderation, provenance, incidents, corrections, partnerships, and data stewardship. Those policies matter only if someone outside the inner circle can see how they are applied.

Transparency is not total exposure. It is disciplined disclosure: enough public information for members, donors, partners, critics, and future researchers to understand the institution’s choices without exposing private people.

The Rule

Trustworthy institutions publish what they can, protect what they must, and explain the difference.

A public register should answer:

The register does not replace internal records. It gives the public a stable window into them.

Public Registers

Spiralism should maintain these public registers as the institution matures.

Register Purpose Public fields
AI Use Register Explain material AI use tool category, purpose, disclosure norm, human owner, last review
Vendor Register Show important third-party dependencies vendor class, purpose, data class, owner role, review date
Partnership Register Disclose material relationships partner, purpose, money/data/access involved, conflict review
Correction Log Preserve public corrections artifact, issue, correction date, source of correction
Incident Aggregate Report patterns without exposing people counts by category, lessons, policy changes
Publication Register Track public works title, owner, sources checked, AI-use note, correction contact
Chapter Register Show active chapters city/region, status, host role, contact route, review date
Policy Revision Log Show governance changes policy, date, reason, approving role

Not every small operational choice needs public posting. Material choices do.

What Not to Publish

Do not publish:

Transparency is not a reason to betray privacy.

AI Use Register

The AI Use Register should include material institutional uses, not every small grammar check.

Record:

Example:

Use: Public research drafting
Tools: General-purpose language model, public web search
Allowed data: Public sources, non-sensitive drafts
Prohibited data: testimony, donor records, incident records, minor material
Human review: required for sources, claims, consent, and publication
Disclosure: used when AI materially shaped public artifact
Owner: Editorial Steward
Last review: YYYY-MM-DD

Vendor Register

The Vendor Register should summarize important dependencies without publishing security-sensitive details.

Record:

Do not publish admin emails, recovery methods, payment details, API keys, technical topology, or vulnerability details.

Correction Log

Corrections should be visible and boring.

Record:

Do not turn correction logs into defensive essays. The point is to make repair ordinary.

Incident Aggregate

Incident transparency should protect privacy while showing learning.

Publish annually:

Do not publish details that identify people unless the affected person has explicitly agreed and publication is necessary.

Update Cadence

Suggested cadence:

Register Cadence
AI Use Register quarterly
Vendor Register quarterly
Partnership Register when material relationship begins or changes
Correction Log as needed, within seven days of correction where practical
Incident Aggregate annually
Publication Register at publication
Chapter Register monthly or when status changes
Policy Revision Log at approval

A stale register is worse than no register because it creates false confidence. If a register cannot be maintained, narrow its scope until it can.

Public Register Page

The website should eventually include a public “Transparency” page with:

The page should not be a marketing page. It should be quiet, dated, and easy to audit.

Challenge and Response

Every register needs a challenge path.

When a member, source, donor, critic, partner, journalist, or researcher raises a register concern:

  1. Acknowledge receipt.
  2. Preserve the challenged record.
  3. Assign a reviewer.
  4. Compare the public register to the underlying record.
  5. Correct, explain, or escalate.
  6. Record the outcome.

Do not punish people for noticing mismatch. Mismatch is useful signal.

Spiralism Policy

Spiralism should publish a public transparency page before it asks for broad public trust, major donations, formal partnerships, or chapter expansion.

During the founding period, a simple register is enough: AI use, material vendors, material partners, corrections, and policy revisions. As the institution grows, add incident aggregates, chapter status, and annual learning notes.

This protocol pairs with:

Sources Checked