About Dexerto: Editorial staff, standards and policies

An image of the Dexerto logoDexerto

Contents

About Us

Dexerto is an entertainment media group that keeps over 100 million monthly fans engaged in trending topics across gaming, esports, TV & movies, and social media. We champion every aspect of gaming and it all begins with the games that matter so much to our audience, including Call of Duty, Pokemon, FIFA, Apex Legends, Overwatch, and many more.

Because Dexerto understands that gaming is about more than just the joy of playing, we delve deeper into the culture, whether it’s reporting on the biggest streamers and content creators across Twitch and YouTube, or our award-winning esports coverage on the biggest titles like League of Legends, Valorant, and Counter-Strike 2.

Our global team of experienced gaming, esports, and entertainment journalists help our millions of fans get the most out of their passion, providing expert assistance with top tips and guides, and recommending the best tech that helps players reach the pinnacle of their game like their favourite esports pros or streamers.

Gaming is just one aspect of popular culture that our audience fervently consumes. We feed their passion with news and reviews on the most-watched TV shows and anime on streaming platforms, plus the box office smashes in cinemas. From Marvel and DC to Star Wars, Stranger Things to House of the Dragon, we give our take on the moments that everyone is talking about.

Founded in 2015 by ex-professional gamers, Dexerto has deep roots in the esports scene and today, our writers continue to be embedded in the communities they represent across social media, reporting on the biggest viral talking points on Twitch, TikTok, Twitter, and Reddit. Whether it’s a massive Twitch streamer revealing their face for the first time, an entertaining TikTok trend, or a drama that’s the talk of Twitter, we’re always on the pulse.

If it’s trending and entertaining, it’s on Dexerto.

Contact Us

For press releases, news tips, and Dexerto.com enquiries, email us at press.dexerto.com. For any other enquiries, contact us here.

Offices

London

Dexerto Limited

3rd Floor

86-90 Paul Street

London EC2A 4NE

Tel: +44 (0)20 3371 7226

Paris

Dexerto LTD

5, Bis Avenue du Cep

78300 Poissy

France

Tel: +33 1 73 16 72 82

Chicago

Dexerto Services, LLC

1655 S Blue Island Ave.

PMB 514

Chicago, IL 60608

‍Tel: +1 708-637-1698

Meet the senior management team

Dexerto.com Editors

Editor in Chief: Tom East

Tom joined Dexerto as Editor in Chief in 2019 after enjoying over 20 years as a games and esports writer and editor. Beginning his career as a writer for a successful PlayStation magazine at Future Publishing in the late 1990s, he has reported on every console generation from PSone to PS5, Xbox to Series S / X, and N64 to Switch. After contributing to magazines such as GamesMaster and NGC, he left print media to launch the Official Nintendo Magazine’s website in 2006. He was at the helm during the Wii and DS era, building a community of loyal Nintendo fans who would come to the website each day to read reports on the latest Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon games.

Following this, Tom landed his first role in esports as Red Bull’s Games and Esports Editor. At Red Bull, he worked on esports events such as Red Bull 5G, promoted activities at Red Bull Gaming Sphere and continued to report on all the biggest games, including the likes of FIFA, Call of Duty, and Pokemon.

He has brought his editorial experience to Dexerto.com, where he leads its team of passionate editors and writers to help it grow into a leading entertainment website.

Contact: tom.east@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

Managing Editor: Calum Patterson

Calum joined Dexerto in 2017, becoming the team’s first weekend writer. After graduating from university, he immediately joined the Dexerto team full-time as a writer, using his knowledge of gaming and streamers and eye for a unique story to produce insightful, informed, and viral news content.

With a passion for gaming culture that goes beyond just the new releases and the big esports events, Calum has always focused on highlighting the people who make the gaming and esports world tick, including streamers, content creators, professional players and developers. Now leading the UK team as Editor, Calum aims to build upon the great coverage Dexerto’s writers provide in all areas, with a focus on everything from Twitch streamers, gaming news, and professional esports, to viral TikTok moments and the latest Twitter trends.

Calum leads Dexerto’s global team of editors and writers to ensure that we continue to serve our worldwide audience with the best gaming, entertainment, esports and tech coverage.

Contact: calum.patterson@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

UK Editor: Jacob Hale

Jacob joined the Dexerto team in 2019, initially as a staff writer, after a year of gaining experience in writing and editing for various platforms. This included bylines in Sky Sports and an editor role at GINX TV, where he also played a pivotal role in research and assisting production for their flagship TV shows.

While esports has always been Jacob’s primary passion, he has also delved into the broader gaming sphere and developed a keen understanding of the dynamic world of influencers, streamers, and content creation.

Jacob is now Dexerto’s UK Editor, overseeing the team’s award-winning coverage across esports, gaming, and the ever-moving world of online entertainment. Notably, his comprehensive coverage of Call of Duty esports and the broader scene earned him a nomination for the Esports Journalist of the Year award in 2023.

Contact: jacob.hale@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

Australia Editor: Brad Norton

Brad joined Dexerto in 2019 as one of the founding members of the Australian team. As a lifelong gamer, their passion for the industry fueled them through a Journalism degree while building their portfolio on the side. Years of independent coverage and a handful of viral stories later, he began working full time in the gaming media industry.

Joining to help establish Dexerto’s Aussie shift soon after, Brad has climbed the ranks from Staff Writer, Senior Writer, Deputy Editor, to now Managing Editor.

Leading the charge down under, Brad now leads the team at the biggest it’s ever been, with talented local writers establishing their voice across all major verticals.

Contact: brad.norton@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

Evergreen Manager: Ava Thompson-Powell

Ava joined Dexerto in 2020 as an Editorial Assistant – her first industry job – where her role began in writing and updating content within gaming, ensuring that evergreen pages were updated in a timely manner and to a high standard.

A lifelong gamer with a keen eye for attention to detail and a knowledge of RPGs, MMOs, and titles like The Sims and Dead by Daylight, Ava became an Evergreen Editor across the gaming vertical in 2022. She rolled out processes to ensure content was the best it could be teamwide, subsequently taking up the title across the site later that year.

Alongside this part of her role, Ava used her expertise to conduct interviews with streamers, Behaviour Interactive, and Blizzard Entertainment; while also reviewing games like It Takes Two, LEGO Stars Wars: The Skywalker Saga, DLC for The Sims 4, and Saints Row.

Now an Evergreen Manager for the Dexerto network, Ava oversees all evergreen operations, leading a large evergreen team while continuing to implement strategies and ensure that content meets our quality standards.

Contact: avathompsonpowell@dexerto.com

TV & Movies Editor: Chris Tilly

Chris joined Dexerto as TV & Movies Editor in May 2022, having spent more than 20 years as an editor and writer at the forefront of the entertainment industry.

He began his career at cult magazine Hotdog, where he wrote about both new and classic movies, and interviewed some of the world’s biggest stars on film sets and at film festivals.

Chris then joined the staff at Time Out where he helped launch the outlet’s website, as well as one of the industry’s first movie podcasts, where the focus was on arthouse, independent, and foreign films.

His next job was at games website IGN where Chris kicked off their Film and TV coverage. Over nearly a decade there, he starred in the hugely popular ‘Superhero Show’ video series that covered Marvel and DC, and helped found Kapow Comic-Con, which brought the stars of those movies to a huge convention in North London.

He then joined Fandom where Chris built a global editorial team, and oversaw the website’s shift away from user-generated content in its coverage of Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Stranger Things, more superhero movies, and Chris’s greatest love, horror.

Chris has brought his knowledge and passion for Film and TV to Dexerto.com, where he leads an equally knowledgeable and passionate team of writers who are busy turning the site into a leading entertainment destination.

Contact: chris.tilly@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

Entertainment Editor: Virginia Glaze

Virginia joined Dexerto in 2018 as an entertainment writer. After studying English at the University of Central Oklahoma, she started working as an esports journalist in 2017, covering competitive fighting games and reporting from tournament circuits for outlets such as Red Bull, Ginx, and Shoryuken. Upon joining Dexerto, she has transitioned from writing about competitive fighting games to covering the latest entertainment stories. Specializing in reporting on trending topics social media and influencers, she is an authority on TikTok and YouTube stars, including Charli D’amelio, Logan Paul, and Amouranth.

Thanks to the strength of her reporting, Virginia became a Senior Entertainment Writer, leading Dexerto’s entertainment writers in the US. Her promotion to Editor will see her lead the entertainment content strategy across Dexerto’s global teams.

As well as managing the quality of entertainment content, she continues to write engaging articles every day, interviewing top internet stars. She does this whilst staying on top of the biggest trends on sites like TikTok, Instagram, and more.

Contact: virginia.glaze@dexerto.com, LinkedIn

Senior Management

Josh Nino: Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder (LinkedIn)

Chris Marsh: Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder (LinkedIn)

Mike Kent: Chief Content Officer and Co-Founder (LinkedIn)

Nico Hulsmans: Chief Monetisation Officer and Co-Founder (LinkedIn)

Ken Olsen: VP of Marketing (LinkedIn)

Mike ‘Murph’ O’Reilly: Head of Business Development (LinkedIn)

Adam Mills: Head of HR (LinkedIn)

Lauren Hanley: Head of Culture (LinkedIn)

Juan Pablo Mendez Tronge: SEO Manager (LinkedIn)

Matt Weston: Head of Social Growth (LinkedIn)

Dan Bulmer: Head of Video Production (LinkedIn)

Editorial standards & disclosures, and correction policy

Dexerto always strives to reach the highest of editorial standards when we report on games, esports, tech, entertainment, and TV & Movies. Here, you’ll find all of our policies on NDAs and embargoes, reviews, conflicts of interest, sourcing, and corrections and updates.

NDAs & embargoes

Dexerto aims to be a leading authority in entertainment. To bring our audience trustworthy information and produce expert content on the latest games, TV & movies, and tech in a timely fashion, we are often required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). These agreements between Dexerto and a company specify that we will not reveal certain information about a product before a certain date, and they enable us to prepare content in advance. This could be breaking news as it happens, a comprehensive review ahead of the release date, or expert guides to help our readers to get the most out of their new game, a movie or the latest tech. We do not break NDAs, but as a global media organization we will not sign an NDA that lifts after a product has been released in another territory. We will never change our opinion of a product because we have signed an NDA that has given us earlier access than other websites or publications.

Reviews and reviewers

Dexerto’s critics have years of experience reviewing games, TV shows, movies, and tech with bylines in IGN, Tech Radar, Time Out amongst others. Their passion for the subject matter stretches back even further, with our writers having grown up playing the latest console and PC games, watching new blockbusters in the cinema, and tinkering with the latest gadgets. As a result, they can be trusted to critically assess the positives and negatives of the product they are given to review and inform you whether it is worth your time and money. You may not always agree with their opinions, but whether it’s a new Call of Duty game, the latest Marvel show, or a high-end graphics card, you can be sure that they will be justified.

We often get access to games, tech, TV shows, and movies ahead of release. This enables us to bring you a timely review ahead of release so that you know whether you should spend your money or time on it. We aren’t always granted that opportunity, though, and we sometimes get access at the same time as everyone else. When that happens, we take the time to produce a thorough review – whether we get early access or not, it doesn’t affect our writers’ opinions of a product.

Sometimes we will also produce a review in progress. For example, if we are only given early access to the Campaign mode of Call of Duty, we will begin a review in progress so that you will know whether the single-player version of the game is worth playing before it is released. However, because the multiplayer is such an important component of a modern FPS, we won’t publish the full review with a score until we have properly tested it on live servers with other players. We will never rush a review to get a score out as soon as possible.

Games are often updated with patches that fix bugs or alter parts of the game. While we do not update our reviews of games and adjust the scores after each patch or minor adjustment, we do review new seasons of some big live service games when substantial changes are made that completely change the game. We will always endeavor to keep readers updated if changes have been made that alter our opinion of a game that is of significant interest to our audience.

The Review Process

Our editors know our writers better than anyone. As soon as we have access to a product, they will assign the review to someone who has the most expertise in that area. For example, a horror fan will be best placed to review a new horror film, a Pokemon fan will be able to assess how the new games compare to previous generations, whilst only someone with deep knowledge of graphics cards and benchmarking will be able to say confidently whether a $1000+ piece of kit should be bought.

Any writer with a close personal relationship with someone in the company that makes a new product that is being critiqued will not be able to write the review.

After the reviewer is chosen, they will then take the time necessary to form an opinion on whatever product they are reviewing and give it a score out of 5. The review will then be checked by an editor to ensure that there are no errors and that the score has been justified in the text. Whilst the score may be discussed for this reason, the reviewer will have spent more time with the product than any other writer or editor on the team – it is their expert opinion and we will not change the tone or the score of a review by committee. The score offers a quick guide as to the quality of any product and can be used to decide whether you should sink your time and money into it. Reading the full review will give you a clearer picture of the positives and negatives of the product and how it compares to others on the market.

When giving a product a score, our reviewers can only consider how enjoyable a product is and how it compares to others on the market at the time of review. For example, we may give a sports game a high score at the time of release because it is the best example of its genre, but if the following year’s game is even better, that doesn’t mean we adjust the score of the old review or give the new game an inflated score. You will always find out the complete picture by reading the full review.

While we do give consideration to whether a product is value for money at the time of review, the most important factor is quality. We wouldn’t adjust the score of an average game because it is cheap – it is still an average game whatever you spend on it.

However, given the varying prices and quality of tech, we might point out if a budget piece of tech is good for the price. Whilst we wouldn’t assume what our audience can afford to spend on any given product, it would be fair to say that not everyone has the same disposable income. Therefore, we would compare a budget speaker to other budget speakers on the market and score it accordingly.

Review Scores

We currently score games, tech, TV shows, and movies out of 5. Here is what each score means.

5: Great

4: Very Good

3: Good

2: Below Average

1. Poor

Whilst scores don’t give the complete picture, we understand their importance. As a result, the score is only influenced by the reviewer’s opinion of the product at the time of writing. The consumer is always our priority – we never consider advertising, sponsorship deals or future access to products when conducting a review. 

Review scores and opinions may be shared with publishers for use on their marketing materials, but under no circumstances would we alter our opinions or scores for publicity. 

Prior to November 2022, we scored out of 10.

Conflicts of Interest

Some of Dexerto’s staff have previously worked with people and at companies that produce or promote products that we write about. Likewise, former employees have also left Dexerto to join these companies. Our editors manage our coverage to ensure that there are no conflicts of interest whilst giving consideration to the type of content being produced and our resources. If someone at Dexerto has previously worked at a company or business that we cover, we endeavor to ensure that the coverage is handled by another writer or employee.

Our editorial staff have to establish professional relationships with people at the companies who produce the products we cover, but should they develop into very close personal relationships or they have familial ties, they have to disclose them to their editor, who will make a decision whether their relationship affects their ability to produce impartial coverage.

Content Coverage

Dexerto produces a wide variety of content from news to reviews, interviews to tips and guides. Some of the information we report will be provided to us by publishers, studios, and manufacturers in the form of press releases or through their own media channels. In order to produce more in-depth and comprehensive coverage for our audience, we will also publish content derived from other sources. We always strive to verify information from sources with additional sources and whilst we will protect the identity of anyone who reveals information to our writers anonymously, their identity must be proven to editorial staff. We also publish articles featuring information that has been revealed by another publication or content creator. When doing this, we always credit and provide a link to the original source of information. Images will also be credited to the creator or the publisher which supplied them.

Before publishing any information in a report that’s not in the public domain, we contact the companies or people involved in an attempt to get a comment.

We do report on rumors and leaked information, but we always ensure that the information comes from reliable sources, and we contact companies involved in any stories of this nature so that they may be given the opportunity to verify or deny rumors.

Corrections and Updates

At Dexerto, we publish hundreds of new articles a week, many of which require updating to ensure that all information is relevant and up to date. This could be a developing news story that features new information and context that was previously unavailable, a new recommendation in a buyer’s guide, or extra tips following an update in a game.

In order to be transparent with our audience and held accountable for our work, we correct any factual errors that are made in a story and add a note at the bottom of the article, explaining what the error was and what it has been changed to. Should a factual error fundamentally change the meaning of the article, we will update it with the new information and explain the errors that were made near the beginning of the piece.

Generally, we have a policy of not removing content from the website. On rare occasions, usually involving legal matters, we may have to remove an article from Dexerto.com. When this happens, you will see an editor’s note where the original article existed explaining the reasons for its removal.

Content Sponsorship

In addition to advertising on the site, Dexerto has established content partnerships with brands who sponsor some of our articles. Through this funding, we are able to produce even more of the entertaining editorial content you enjoy.

The majority of the content on Dexerto.com is written by our editorial team and is independent of any advertising or sponsorship. However, Dexerto also works with brands who are interested in sponsoring specific types of articles and bespoke articles about their product, service or event.

To maintain trust with our audience we are transparent with readers when we produce articles that are created in partnership with brands, ensuring that we label them clearly as an Advertisement Feature or Supported Editorial.

These articles are written by Dexerto writers and, depending on whether it is an Advertisement Feature or Supported Editorial, they will occasionally collaborate with our partners to obtain the information they need to write about their products. As these features are funded by our partners, they will include external links to their products. Here is everything you need to know about the different types of content sponsorship.

Supported Editorial

Articles that are labeled as supported editorial are funded by a commercial partner, and while they may feature advert links to their products, the editorial is not written to advertise partner’s products. The subject matter of a supported editorial article will be agreed with a funding partner in conjunction with a Dexerto editor and our VP of Marketing. The article is independently written by a member of the Dexerto editorial team with guidance from an editor and it is not sent to the partner for approval. An example of supported editorial would be our interviews with the esports pro Shottzy and the streamer Santana. These articles were funded by a commercial partner, through which we were able to interview personalities that are of interest to our audience. However, whilst we disclosed that the content was produced in partnership with a named brand, the article made no further mention of the brand’s products. You can find examples of supported editorial here.

Advertisement Features are articles that are paid for and approved by a commercial partner. The copy will be produced by a member of Dexerto staff who will work with the partner to get the information required to produce the article. After it is written, it will be sent to the commercial partner for approval. Advertisement features are commercial content that usually promotes a partner’s products and, as such, do include advert links. You can find examples of Advertisement Features here.

Affiliate advertising & Deals standards

Affiliate links help Dexerto bring the best coverage across gaming, tech, and TV & Movies. Affiliation is a common practice across digital media and it provides retail links for readers to easily purchase the products that are being written about. For example, if we are writing a review of a new keyboard, game or show on Netflix, we may include a link to a retailer or streaming service where you can purchase the product should you wish to do so after reading the review. Should you click on the product link we will earn a small commission on anything purchased from the linked retailer. Affiliate links appear on many different articles across Dexerto and we are always transparent with our audience, with a clear disclaimer at the bottom of any article that includes product links to retailers.

Deals standards

Purchasing new gaming and tech products can be expensive and so Dexerto works with retail partners to bring you the best deals around to help you save money. Whether it’s a Black Friday sale or Amazon Prime Day, you will be able to find links to bargains on Dexerto.com, whilst our Dexerto Deals Twitter account will also highlight value deals. Deals are often time-limited. However, we strive to keep our pages updated with the best offers where possible. Especially around Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day when we’ll keep our pages updated with the latest offers, ensuring that you don’t miss out. We are not paid directly by retailers to promote their deals and our editorial team will only highlight products that we think our audience will like. After all, a good deal is only a good deal if the product you are purchasing is good. 

However, in order to place the latest deals on Dexerto.com and our Twitter account, we sign up for affiliate schemes. Placing links to retailers makes it easier for our audience to take advantage of these deals, but we will earn a small commission on anything purchased on the retail site. Any deals article that includes product links will feature a clear disclaimer.