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IPTC - International Press Telecommunications Council IPTC Publisher Info - Implementation Guide

IPTC - International Press Telecommunications Council

Getting Started

This guide will walk you through implementing IPTC Publisher Info on your website. The process involves creating an HTML file that embeds JSON-LD metadata in the standard schema.org format and making it accessible at a specific URL.

Prerequisites

Step-by-Step Implementation

Step 1: Prepare Your Information

Before creating your file, gather the following information:

Required Information

Step 2: Generate Your File

  1. Visit the IPTC Publisher Info Generator
  2. Fill out the form step by step
  3. Review your generated HTML with embedded JSON-LD
  4. Download the publisher-info.html file

Option B: Create Manually

  1. Use the example HTML file in examples/publisher-info.html as a template
  2. Replace placeholder values with your information
  3. Ensure the JSON-LD follows the JSON Schema

Step 3: Upload to Your Server

Standard Location

Your file must be accessible at:

https://yourdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html

Alternatively, you can embed the JSON-LD directly in your main website pages (such as your homepage or about page) using a <script type="application/ld+json"> tag in the <head> section.

Upload Methods

Method 1: FTP/SFTP
  1. Connect to your server via FTP/SFTP
  2. Navigate to your website's root directory
  3. Create a .well-known folder if it doesn't exist
  4. Upload publisher-info.html to the .well-known folder
Method 2: Web Hosting Control Panel
  1. Log into your hosting control panel (cPanel, Plesk, etc.)
  2. Use the File Manager to navigate to your website root
  3. Create the .well-known directory
  4. Upload your publisher-info.html file
Method 3: Command Line (SSH)
# Connect to your server
ssh username@yourdomain.com

# Navigate to website root
cd /var/www/html

# Create .well-known directory
mkdir -p .well-known

# Upload your file (if you have it locally)
scp publisher-info.html username@yourdomain.com:/var/www/html/.well-known/
Method 4: Embed in Existing Pages

If you prefer to embed the JSON-LD in your existing website pages: 1. Copy the JSON-LD content from your generated file 2. Add it to your website's HTML <head> section using:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
  // ... your publisher info data
}
</script>

Step 4: Configure Your Server

Set Correct Content-Type

Ensure your server serves the HTML file with the correct MIME type:

Apache (.htaccess)

<Files "publisher-info.html">
    Header set Content-Type "text/html; charset=utf-8"
</Files>

Nginx

location ~* \.html$ {
    add_header Content-Type "text/html; charset=utf-8";
}

cPanel/Shared Hosting - Most shared hosting providers automatically set the correct MIME type for HTML files - If not, contact your hosting provider

Add CORS headers to allow cross-origin access:

Apache (.htaccess)

<Files "publisher-info.html">
    Header set Access-Control-Allow-Origin "*"
    Header set Access-Control-Allow-Methods "GET"
    Header set Access-Control-Allow-Headers "Content-Type"
</Files>

Nginx

location ~* \.html$ {
    add_header Access-Control-Allow-Origin "*";
    add_header Access-Control-Allow-Methods "GET";
    add_header Access-Control-Allow-Headers "Content-Type";
}

Step 5: Test Your Installation

Use the Installation Checker

  1. Visit the IPTC Publisher Info Installation Checker
  2. Enter your domain
  3. Review the results and fix any issues

Manual Testing

  1. Visit https://yourdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html
  2. Verify the file loads correctly
  3. Check that the HTML contains valid JSON-LD in a <script type="application/ld+json"> tag
  4. Ensure the file is served over HTTPS
  5. If embedded in existing pages, verify the JSON-LD appears in the page source

Step 6: Validate Your File

Use the Validator Tool

  1. Visit the IPTC Publisher Info Validator
  2. Enter your file URL or paste the content
  3. Review validation results
  4. Fix any compliance issues

Common Issues and Solutions

Issue: File Not Found (404 Error)

Cause: File not uploaded to correct location or server not configured Solution: - Verify file is in /.well-known/publisher-info.html - Check file permissions (should be readable by web server) - Ensure .well-known directory is accessible - If using embedded approach, verify the JSON-LD is in the page source

Issue: Wrong Content-Type

Cause: Server serving file with incorrect MIME type Solution: Configure server to serve .html files as text/html; charset=utf-8

Issue: HTTPS Redirect Issues

Cause: Server not properly configured for HTTPS Solution: - Ensure SSL certificate is valid - Configure HTTPS redirects properly - Test with https://yourdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html

Issue: CORS Errors

Cause: Missing CORS headers Solution: Add CORS headers to your server configuration (see Step 4)

Issue: Invalid JSON-LD

Cause: Syntax errors in your JSON-LD within the HTML file Solution: - Use a JSON validator to check syntax - Ensure all quotes and brackets are properly closed - Verify the JSON-LD is properly wrapped in <script type="application/ld+json"> tags - Test with the IPTC Publisher Info validator tool

Server-Specific Instructions

Apache

Nginx

WordPress

Static Site Generators (Jekyll, Hugo, etc.)

Maintenance and Updates

Regular Checks

Version Control

Monitoring

Advanced Configuration

Custom Domains

If using a custom domain, ensure the file is accessible at:

https://customdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html

Subdomains

For subdomains, create separate files:

https://news.yourdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html
https://blog.yourdomain.com/.well-known/publisher-info.html

CDN Configuration

If using a CDN: - Ensure the .well-known path is not cached - Configure proper headers at the CDN level - Test with and without CDN

Getting Help

Documentation

Tools

Support

Next Steps

After implementing IPTC Publisher Info:

  1. Announce your implementation to your audience
  2. Link to your file from your website's about page
  3. Monitor usage and compliance scores
  4. Consider additional trust indicators for enhanced credibility
  5. Stay updated with IPTC Publisher Info standard developments

Compliance Checklist

Congratulations! You've successfully implemented IPTC Publisher Info. Your organisation is now part of a global effort to increase transparency and trust in media publishing.