JESS works best when you know what to ask and what to expect.
Take a few minutes to learn how JESS can help you plan safer assignments, what it can and can't do, and how to get better guidance.
JESS is an AI-powered safety planning tool that helps journalists and editors identify risks and prepare for assignments, drawing on trusted resources from leading press freedom NGOs.
Anyone involved in newsgathering: editors, news managers, freelancers, and local journalists, including visual journalists, filmmakers and producers. Whether you have a safety desk or not, JESS provides expert guidance for your assignments.
Set up a free account and get approved before you start.
Get sourced answers to a safety question in seconds.
Walk through a short assessment and get a plan you can save and share.
Tell JESS what helped, so the guidance keeps improving.
Use JESS inside Claude or ChatGPT, without switching tabs.
"JESS makes the kind of safety guidance that used to be reserved for a handful of elite news organizations available to any journalist, anywhere."
— Joel Simon, Founder of the Journalism Protection Initiative
JESS is not a substitute for safety training, insurance, or safety protocols and procedures, and should never be used as a replacement for professional judgement.
JESS cannot:
JESS promotes a culture of safety, but responsibility for duty of care lies with you and your organization.
See the ACOS Freelance Journalist Safety Principles and The Fundamentals of Safe Commissioning course for guidance.
Describe your assignment or your safety concerns. The more context you provide, the better the guidance.
Get safety recommendations drawn from expert resources. Ask follow-ups and dig deeper.
JESS guidance is general, so consider how it fits your situation, context or circumstances, and use the Source Knowledge option to help you verify the guidance given.
Use the guidance to inform your planning, team conversations, and safety documentation. Revisit when plans or contexts change.
"I'm planning to cover a protest next week. What safety considerations should I think about, and how should I prepare?"
"We're debating whether to publish leaked documents that could embarrass the mayor but might harm ongoing investigations. What measures should we take to protect the source's identity and maintain strong digital security?"
"I'm covering a contentious election where protests could turn violent. Help me plan."
"I'm heading to a community hit by a hurricane to report on the aftermath. What should my plan include?"
Use the thumbs up and thumbs down buttons to submit anonymous feedback on conversations.
New accounts are reviewed by our team before access is granted.