grassroots A journal editor for newspeople Published by the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors Letters to the Editor: Insights, guidelines and suggestions from the gatekeepers

volume 47, no. 1 • spring 2006 grassroots grassroots editor • spring 2006 A journal for newspeople editor elcome to this special issue of Grassroots Editor focusing on letters to the edi- tor. The ISWNE board of directors believed LTEs were important enough to ded- Published by the W International Society icate an entire edition to the topic. To that end, several ISWNE members — including of Weekly Newspaper Editors three board members — were invited to share their expertise and common practices. Editor: Dr. Chad Stebbins The accompanying articles describe personal and newspaper philosophies on gen- Graphic Designer: Liz Ford erating more letters, editing letters that are full of egregious spelling and grammar mis- Grassroots Editor takes, handling letters produced by public advocacy groups but signed by local resi- (USPS 227-040, ISSN 0017-3541) dents, dealing with anonymous letter writers, verifying authorship of letters, handling is published quarterly for $25 per year by announcements disguised as letters, limiting prolific letter writers, publishing thank the International Society of Weekly you letters, placing limits on the length of letters, and deciding whether to add an edi- Newspaper Editors, Institute of tor’s note beneath a letter. International Studies, Missouri Southern State College, 3950 East Newman Road, Some newspapers take letters to the editor for granted; others believe that LTEs are Joplin, MO 64801-1595. Periodicals a measure of a paper’s vitality and should be handled personally by the editor. As one postage paid at Joplin, Mo., and at writer puts it, “It may be humbling for journalism professionals like us, well-trained additional mailing offices. and long-experienced in our craft, to admit it, but some of the most important words in our newspapers are written by amateurs in letters to the editor.” POSTMASTER: Send address changes Surveys indicate that obituaries and LTEs are the best-read sections of a newspaper. to Grassroots Editor, Institute of We devoted the Fall 2001 issue of Grassroots Editor to obituaries and believe letters International Studies, Missouri Southern deserve the same treatment. If you gain one idea from reading these articles, then per- State College, 3950 E. Newman Road, haps we have succeeded. Joplin, MO 64801-1595. Volume 47, Issue 1, Spring 2006 — Chad Stebbins, Editor Subscription Rate: $25 per year in the United States and Canada; $28 per year elsewhere. In This Issue Officers of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors: Letter writing began in the colonial period President: Carol O’Leary Central Wisconsin Publications, Inc. By Don Brod ...... Page 2 Abbotsford, Wis

Vice President: Harry L. Hix Letters a telling measure of a paper’s vitality Gaylord College of Journalism, By Bill Schanen ...... Page 4 University of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.

Executive Director: Our goal is to provide a forum that is as open Dr. Chad Stebbins, Director, Institute of as possible International Studies, Missouri Southern State University, 3950 E. Newman Road, By Jim Painter ...... Page 5 Joplin, MO 64801-1595 Phone: (417) 625-9736 Fax: (417) 659-4445 ‘Letters from Readers’ a more appropriate heading E-mail: [email protected] By Ross Connelly...... Page 7 Board of Directors: Don Brod An open editorial page with few restrictions works best St. Charles, Ill. By Robert Mihalek ...... Page 10 Sandra George Jonesville, Mich. Letters are best-read section of newspaper Robert Mihalek Yellow Springs News, Yellow Springs, Ohio By David Cox ...... Page 11 Jim Painter West Valley View, Litchfield Park, Ariz. Letters are so important that I handle them myself Jeremy Waltner The Freeman Courier, Freeman, S.D. By Dick Drysdale ...... Page 12 Chris Wood Wisconsin Web Offset, Brookfield, Wis. Current issues regarding letters to the editor Immediate Past President: By Bill Reader...... Page 14 David Burke The Tuam Herald, Tuam, Ireland 1 grassroots editor • spring 2006 Letter writing began in the colonial period

By Don Brod They were signed “Silence Dogood,” sup- graceful writers and contributed to their posedly an elderly widow. Fourteen of the own publications. Richard Steele and “Dogood Letters” appeared over a period Joseph Addison were popular with the A merchant in Maryland sat down one of six months. Tatler and then the Spectator. And Daniel day in the mid-1760s and wrote a letter to Defoe, who edited Mist’s Journal from his local newspaper, the Maryland Gazette. While the “Dogood Letters” were charming and sometimes humorous, the 1717 to 1720, might have been the period’s A copy of that paper, through the usual sys- best journalist. tem of exchanges, was shipped across the same cannot be said about the “Letters Atlantic and was reprinted in the Public from a Farmer in Pennsylvania to the In the colonies, on the other hand, edi- Ledger of London. Then a copy of the Inhabitants of the British Colonies.” tors were mainly mechanics and not writ- Ledger crossed the Atlantic again, and the Twelve installments published first in the ers. It was not until the second generation Maryland merchant’s letter was printed in Pennsylvania Chronicle demonstrated the of American editors that one finds writers the New-York Journal on January 1, 1767. unconstitutionality of British action, par- contributing articles of grace and style to ticularly taxes, against the colonies and their own papers — editors such as This head-spinning example illustrates argued for the rights of “free-born Benjamin Franklin of the Pennsylvania a couple of things about early American Englishmen.” John Dickinson, a lawyer- Gazette and Noah Webster of the American newspaper editors and letters to the editor: politician, was later revealed as the author Minerva. (1) The editors, most of whom were print- of these “Letters from a Pennsylvania ers rather than journalists, took their con- The Revolutionary War ended, but Farmer.” Benjamin Franklin was so there was no official peace until Jay’s tent wherever they could find it, and (2) impressed with Dickinson’s series that he many letters were reprinted a number of Treaty with England in 1795. The opposi- arranged to have it published as a pamphlet tion party, Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic times, often in distant colonies and on both in London. Franklin, of course, eventually sides of the ocean. However, it was rare Republicans, bitterly denounced it, but disagreed with Dickinson’s middle-ground Webster, staunch Federalist that he was, that a letter made its way from Baltimore approach. to New York by way of London. defended the treaty with a series of 12 let- Dickinson seemed to be interested in a ters, signed “Curtius,” in his American Letters in the colonial and early federal peaceful solution, but Samuel Adams was Minerva. Rufus King, another defender of periods came from three sources: contribu- preaching revolution. Writing in the the treaty, said the Curtius letters “had con- tors, the editors themselves, and eventually Boston Gazette and other papers, using the tributed more than any other papers. . . to from letter writers as we know them today. pen name “Candidus” and more than 20 allay the discontent and opposition to the others, Adams called on the colonies to treaty.” Webster, who went on to become Contributors “Form an Independent State — An our best known lexicographer, apparently Well crafted essays, often called letters, American Commonwealth.” Jonathon had a way with words. appeared in the early British newspapers. Sewall, the attorney general of If Webster supported the Federalists, Regular contributors writing over pen Massachusetts, engaged in a heated strong opposition came from Benjamin names such as “Cato” were eagerly await- exchange using the name “Philanthrop” Franklin Bache, who started his Aurora ed by readers. Such letters on political and while Adams responded as “Vindex.” just six months after the death of his name- philosophical subjects were reprinted Several months before he published his sake grandfather. He went so far as to do widely on both sides of the Atlantic. famous pamphlet “Common Sense,” the unthinkable — attack George Wash- As the political controversy between Thomas Paine contributed a letter to the ington himself in two letters headed “From Britain and the colonies heated up, many of Pennsylvania Journal, writing as “Hum- a Correspondent.” For this he was the tar- the contributors to English newspapers anus,” calling not only for independence get of great wrath and lived up to his nick- wrote about the American situation. Since but also the abolition of slavery. name, “Lightning Rod Junior.” a great number of them were sympathetic The need for such public letters did not to American demands for better treatment end with the American Revolution. Next Letter writers by the Crown, they inevitably found their there was a constitution to ratify. A series of 85 letters addressed “To the People of The practice of publishing letters from way into colonial newspapers. Other writ- ordinary citizens may have begun in 1690 ers sidestepped the middleman and sent the State of New York” appeared first in the Independent Journal of New York City in London when John Dunton started the their letters directly for American distribu- Athenian Mercury, a paper that included tion. and then in papers throughout the states. All were signed “Publius,” but they were questions asked by readers and answered For an early example of a homegrown by the editors. Entire issues were filled series of letters, we turn to teenaged written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Political science with questions and answers about love and Benjamin Franklin, apprentice to his older marriage. One might imagine a collection brother James, who was the proprietor of students still read the collected Federalist Papers today. of “Dear Abby” or “Ask Amy” columns. the New-England Courant. Young Ben had The first publication for women, the some things to say, and he knew his broth- Ladies Mercury, came along three years er was not interested in printing them, so Editors later and was devoted completely to such he slipped his contributions under the door. Some of the early British editors were questions and answers. 2 grassroots editor • spring 2006

Letter writers on this side of the cabinet members. Jefferson responded in a But did an anonymous reader write that Atlantic seemed to be concerned with letter to Washington that he had not written letter? Or did the editor do it himself? Only more serious matters, and they didn’t nec- any letters attacking Hamilton in the oppo- John Holt knows, and he has been dead for essarily find newspapers to be the best sition National Gazette. Washington might almost two-and-a-half centuries. medium to convey their thoughts. James have been suspicious because Philip Don Brod, a member of the ISWNE board Franklin is said to have launched the first Freneau, the paper’s editor, was employed of directors, was chairman of the newspaper crusade in America in 1721 by Jefferson’s State Department as a trans- Department of Journalism at Northern when his New-England Courant vigorous- lator. Illinois University from 1976 to 1981 and ly attacked the growing practice of inocu- Since most modern newspapers require from 1987 to 1992. He can be contacted at lation for smallpox over a number of the name of the letter writer, there is little [email protected]. issues. Supporters of inoculation wrote in chance that anyone who fires off an intem- response, but instead of answering in the perate letter for publication will be able to pages of the paper they published a broad- deny it — just in case the President of the Works cited side in letter form addressed to the United States is interested. Bailyn, Bernard, and John B. Hench (eds.), “author” of the Courant. We don’t have much trouble identify- The Press and the American Revolution. It is interesting to note that Franklin ing the three sources of opinion in today’s Worcester: American Antiquarian Society, printed that broadside. A charitable person papers. Contributors provide local and 1980. might assume that Franklin wanted to syndicated columns; editors write editori- Bleyer, Willard G., Main Currents in the afford both sides an opportunity to express als and columns; and letter writers, well, History of American Journalism. Boston: their views. A more practical (and more they write letters. Houghton Mifflin, 1927. likely) motive would be that the struggling Brands, H.W., The First American, The printer needed every job he could get. But things were not always so clear- cut. The infamous Stamp Act of 1765 that Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin. New The use of broadsides or pamphlets England imposed on the colonies required York: Doubleday, 2000. made the exchanges of opinion more all legal papers, official documents, and DeArmond, Anna Janney, Andrew immediate than if the writers waited for the newspapers to be printed on special Bradford, Colonial Journalist. New York: next issue of the weekly newspaper. stamped paper that carried an extra tax. Greenwood Press, 1969 (reprint). However, as more papers increased There was general unrest, but the groups Emery, Michael, and Edwin Emery, The their frequency to daily publication, more affected most — lawyers and newspaper Press and America. Englewood Cliffs, N. “letters to the printer,” as they were editors — stirred up outrage among the J.: Prentice Hall, 1988 (sixth edition). known, began to appear. people. No one would deliver the stamped Miller, John C., Sam Adams, Pioneer in Political figures, of course, also contin- paper on the day the law was to go into effect. Propaganda. Boston: Little, Brown, and ued to write letters to the papers. As Company,1936. Hamilton and Jefferson, the founders of John Holt went ahead and published his the forerunners of our two major political Gazette and Post-Boy in New York, includ- Mott, Frank Luther, American Journal- parties, battled over the direction the gov- ing an anonymous letter that he said he had ism. New York: Macmillan, 1969 (third ernment should take, Hamilton sent anony- received threatening death if he suspended edition). mous letters to the Gazette of the United printing his paper. With that excuse he Schlesinger, Arthur M., Prelude to States defending his positions and attack- continued to publish until the law was Independence, The Newspaper War on ing Jefferson. President Washington inter- eventually repealed. Britain, 1764-1776. New York: Alfred A. vened and asked for peace between his two Knopf, 1966.

3 grassroots editor • spring 2006 LettersLetters aa tellingtelling measuremeasure ofof aa paper’spaper’s vitalityvitality

By Bill Schanen not good writers, and editors should help That said, we work hard to avoid pub- them make their points by improving syn- lishing unsigned letters. We contact the tax and sentence structure. The obvious writers (complete identification and con- Letters to the editor are contributions, caveat is to do nothing to change the tact information is required to even con- but like gifts to good causes, they don’t meaning of the letter. sider the letter) and urge them to publicly just happen — they need to be encouraged sign their letters to give them more credi- and nurtured. To encourage readership of letters, which in turn encourages more readers to bility and influence. Most agree. If those This is worth doing, because letters to write letters, letters should be given gener- who don’t agree can convince us their rea- the editor are a telling measure of a news- ous display on carefully laid out editorial sons for anonymity are valid, we run their paper’s vitality. Healthy letters pages indi- pages, with strong headlines that reflect letters over the words “Name withheld” cate a readership that has been informed the opinion of the letters. Every effort and the writer’s city or village of resi- and engaged by the newspaper and thinks should be made to eliminate barriers to let- dence. We take more care editing unsigned highly enough of it to grant it status as a ters. It should be easy to get a letter in the letters, even though, as far as liability is public forum for the discussion of impor- paper. In a prominent box on the editorial concerned, they are no different than tant issues. page, we tell readers we welcome their let- signed letters. With or without the names The two primary requisites for strong ters and give them instructions on four of the authors, newspaper are responsible letters pages are the same as the requisites ways to get them to us — e-mail (pre- for the content of letters to the editor. for strong newspapers — aggressive ferred, of course, in this post-typesetting Signed or unsigned, letters to the edi- reporting and vigorous editorial writing. era), fax, snail mail and hand delivery to tor are vital — to the newspaper and to the The former turns up information, often our office. We don’t list off-putting rules communities it serves. Letters to the editor about government, that is the raw material for letters and have no policy restricting are elements of a dynamic facilitated by for letters to the editor. The latter presents letters that may been sent to a number of newspapers that can effect change in serv- opinions that provoke supporting or newspapers. A letter should stand on its ice of the public interest. Time and again opposing responses from readers. merits. If it’s relevant to our readership, it I’ve witnessed situations in which a con- Letters to the editor are important should not be rejected because it may be troversial issue develops through news enough to merit an appointed editor. One published in other newspapers, even if it’s stories and in-depth, analytical reporting, of his or her jobs should be to solicit let- part of a blanket mailing. gains traction through editorials and builds ters. At Ozaukee Press, we call experts in Consistent with our belief that the edi- to a critical mass with letters to editor. A various fields in our readership area, citi- torial pages should be a free market of tipping point is reached and action is zens who have made articulate presenta- ideas, we publish unsigned letters. I know, taken. To mention only two examples tions at public meetings, even local, state this is anathema to many of my fellow involving Ozaukee Press, this process and national elected officials and invite publishers and editors. Some have told resulted in a pristine natural area being them to submit letters to the editor on me, “If a letter writer doesn’t have the saved from development and an oil com- issues of local relevance that are in the courage to sign their name to their opin- pany being found negligent in the deaths news. If their responses are particularly ions, I don’t want them in my newspaper.” of three commercial fishermen. interesting, we may present them as an op- That’s an easy position to take, but it fails It may be humbling for journalism ed piece that we label “In My Opinion.” to account for the whistle blower. There professionals like us, well-trained and The letters editor’s main job, of are people, employees of school districts long-experienced in our craft, to admit it, course, is to edit. That’s even more impor- or police departments, for example, who but some of the most important words in tant for letters than for other newspaper have may something to say in a letter our newspapers are written by amateurs in content, and editors shouldn’t be bashful about their employers that is a matter of letters to the editor. about using a decisive hand. This means public importance, but because it could Bill Schanen is publisher of the Ozaukee doing more than verifying the authenticity mean losing their job, don’t have the Press in Port Washington, Wis. He can be of letters, fixing misspellings and bad option of being brave enough to sign their contacted at [email protected]. grammar and identifying and removing names. The door to the newspaper’s forum libelous language. Letter writers often are should not be slammed in their faces.

4 grassroots editor • spring 2006 Our goal is to provide a forum that is as open as possible By Jim Painter great reluctance, because we firmly believe If your editorials state your case boldly that our letters forum should be as free and and clearly, you can rest assured that some- unrestricted as possible. one out there will be more than willing to Since its beginning in April 1986, the If we must impose restrictions, one idea put pen to paper to challenge your intelli- West Valley View has had a very lively and gence and question your ancestry. They dynamic letters section. We’re proud to would be to limit the number of letters a person may have published every month. might even address the issue in their own publish a newspaper in an area where the terms. citizens take their right of free speech very, Currently, we have no limit on the number very seriously. of letters a person may submit (although Once a newspaper has established the we publish only one letter per person per fact that it’s confident enough not only to The people responsible for founding issue). take criticism, but also to publish criticism and publishing the View are adamant in Civil discourse is the cornerstone of a of its editorial positions, other readers will their belief that one of the most important be encouraged to write in and blast away as functions of a free press, whether small free society. The key word, of course, is “civil.” We ask that letter writers refrain well. Soon, your defenders will pitch in. community weeklies or large metropolitan After a while, you might even start to see dailies, is to provide an open forum for the from submitting opinions that attack other individuals. They should be free to attack letters saying such things as: “I rarely free expression of the ideas and opinions of agree with your editorials, but I have to the citizenry — and the more open the bet- the ideas, but not the person behind the ideas. Letters that refer to other individu- give you credit for having the courage to ter. The people of this nation need such publish opposing opinions.” forums so they can speak out about the als, races or religions in gratuitously nega- issues that affect us all, or to comment on tive terms are not likely to be published. Once the letters start rolling in, a snow- the actions of our government and elected When we started 20 years ago, we did ball effect can take place. A recent View let- officials, from local school boards to the not place a limit on the length of letters. ters section was typical: Of 12 letters, six White House. However, as the letters section grew, we challenged the opinions presented by other letter-writers in previous issues. The opinions sections of community had to impose a length limit in order to newspapers offer a snapshot of the collec- ensure that as many people as possible Earning your readers’ respect is impor- tive mindset of the people who live in that could get their opinions published each tant — especially the respect of those who particular community, offering insights week. Now, letters that exceed the 300- disagree with your editorials. into whether the community as a whole is word limit, even by one word, or that do If the flow of letters starts to slow, write predominantly conservative or liberal, tol- not include the author’s full name, city of editorials about the importance of citizens’ erant or bigoted, thoughtful or shrill. residence and phone number (to be used expressing their opinions in a free society. Granted, gadflies are likely to pen letters to only for verification purposes, if neces- Suggest topics for letters to the editor: the editor more often than those who are sary) will not be published. “We’d like to know what our readers think content with the status quo, but still, gad- As the volume of letters increases, the about (insert local issue here).” flies and “screamers” perform an important labor involved in copy editing letters also Make it easy for readers to submit let- service in society by bringing to light increases. Our editors are likely to reject ters. Most of ours come in by e-mail nowa- (often stridently) issues that need to be letters that are written in all caps, all lower days because it’s easier (and cheaper) than openly debated. In the free marketplace of case or without any punctuation at all. writing a letter by hand, sticking it into an ideas, the truth will eventually win out (at Most e-mail programs now come with a envelope and driving it to the local post least that’s the theory). spell-check tool, and we politely ask our office. Encourage people to use e-mail, but As the “gatekeepers” of the ideas letter writers to learn how to use it. demand solid ID — full name, address and expressed on our opinion pages, the editors As always, we welcome our readers’ phone number. of the View have tried to offer as few opinions of our policies and any sugges- Which letters should not be published? restrictions as possible to the flow of opin- tions they might have to make our letters ions from our readers. However, as the pages, or our newspaper in general, better. Although we want to keep the letters community grows and more and more peo- We want to know what our readers think. forum as free and open as possible, there ple submit letters, there may come a time are, of course, letters that we will not pub- How can a community newspaper lish. Obviously, we don’t want to be sued, when we have to be more selective of the attract more letters? letters that are published. so we screen all letters for possible libelous First and foremost, editors should strive statements. We soon might not have enough space to publish compelling editorials and news to publish all of the letters we get, therefore Ours is a family newspaper, so we stories. Don’t back away from tough, con- won’t publish profanity. we might have to impose additional restric- troversial issues. tive guidelines. If we do, it will be with Some newspapers print anonymous or 5 grassroots editor • spring 2006 unsigned letters, but we do not. Anonymity that several times during the last national many published articles this person had seems to make people a little more willing election campaign and sometimes found actually read about the senators’ positions to express opinions that they wouldn’t be the same letter that had been sent to me had when he didn’t even know how to spell inclined to express if their family, neigh- been published in 20 or more newspapers their names correctly (Jon Kyl and John bors and members of their church knew across the country — each time with a dif- McCain). However, I dutifully corrected who was behind the opinion. Our philoso- ferent author’s name at the bottom. Be sus- the spellings before the letter was pub- phy is that if you’re not proud enough of picious. lished, thus eliminating the possibility that your opinion to put your name on it, then How much editing should we do? View same doubt might be raised in the mind of it’s probably not worth publishing. publisher Elliott Freireich and I have been anyone else who read the letter. I admit it’s In our 20-year existence, we have pub- debating this question for about as long as possible that in this age of talk radio, many lished only one letter signed “Name with- we’ve known each other, which is a long, of the opinionated people in our communi- held by request.” We knew the identity of long time. ties get the bulk of their information from the author, and felt that his personal safety the broadcast media and therefore haven’t I LONG to publish unedited letters necessarily ever seen the names of their would truly be at risk if we published his WRITEN LIKE THIS. BUT MY BOSS name. However, the issue was an impor- elected officials in their written form. So, WONT LET ME!!!!!!! DO you ...... think does it matter that we make the letters tant one that needed to be brought to light, THATS RIGHT??!!?? so we made an exception in that one case. seem better-written and the authors better- I sometimes think we do our readers a informed than they really are? I wonder. We do not publish letters that either disservice by correcting spelling, grammar I’m sure Elliott and I will continue to praise or criticize local businesses, unless and punctuation. I have received several debate this topic until we both retire. the business happens to be at the center of letters over the years from teachers and a public debate. In the past two years, sev- Should the editor respond to letters? school district superintendents touting the The West Valley View’s first editor fre- eral proposed Wal-Mart Supercenters were virtues of a quality education (and often debated vociferously in public meetings quently wrote an editor’s response to let- arguing for higher salaries for teachers). ters, often challenging the facts presented and we received many letters either favor- Some of these letters contained egregious ing or opposing the new centers. We pub- in the letters. Whether an editor chooses to spelling and grammar mistakes that obvi- do this or not, of course, should be left up lished those letters because the Wal-Mart ously weren’t mere typographical errors. issue was a legitimate news topic. to the individual editor. I argued that by correcting such errors, On the other hand, we sometimes get However, we have concluded that such we were perhaps hiding the fact that some responses probably discourage people letters complaining about the service at a of our educators aren’t very well-educated. local restaurant — the food was cold, the from writing letters out of fear that the edi- Parents feel comfortable when they think tor will hold them up to public ridicule. waiter was surly — or lauding the same their children’s education is in the hands of restaurant. Since we have no idea of the people who can spell lawsuit without put- Among my favorite quotes by famous writers’ true motives for submitting such ting an “E” on the end of the word. I felt people is one by former Supreme Court letters, we don’t publish them. The com- that by editing the letters, we were giving Justice Felix Frankfurter: “One of the pre- plainer might be the owner or employee of the public a false sense of security. rogatives of American citizenship is the a competing business, and the lauder could right to criticize public men and measures be someone looking for a sneaky way to Elliott, on the other hand, argued that — and that means not only informed and get a free ad in the paper at our expense. we should afford the same courtesies to our responsible criticism, but the freedom to readers that we do to our own employees. speak foolishly and without moderation.” We don’t publish letters that are part of We edit our own reporters’ stories and cor- mass mailings. Those used to be pretty rect their spelling and grammar mistakes, Even if you know that the “facts” pre- easy to spot. A few years ago, we were so why shouldn’t we do the same for our sented in a letter are wrong, fight the urge briefly inundated with scores of identical letter-writers? I can see his point — usual- to challenge them in an editor’s response. postcards with a political message written ly (I’m sure this very article contains a Leave it up to other letter writers to correct as if it were a letter to the editor, but each grammatical error or two). However some- the factual errors. That’s what an open postcard was signed by a different person. times — sometimes — I think we do our debate is all about. I think we get more let- E-mail and the Internet have made it readers a disservice by correcting every ters by keeping ourselves out of the harder to spot such letters. Both major single error in grammar, spelling and punc- debates. Our job is merely to provide a political parties have Web sites that contain tuation, because that gives the person forum for the debate. boilerplate letter templates on various behind the idea expressed in the letter The letters forum is for our readers, not issues. All the party faithful have to do is much more credibility than he or she might for us; our forum is the editorial column. copy and paste one of those letters into an deserve. Jim Painter, a member of the ISWNE board e-mail and send it to the local newspaper Just last week I got a letter from a read- of directors, is managing editor of the West with their own name on it as the author. If er criticizing some of the positions of Valley View in Litchfield Park, Ariz. He you suspect a letter might be one of those, Arizona senators “John Kyle” and “John can be contacted at editor@westvalley- copy a sentence or two and Google it. I did McCaine.” I couldn’t help but wonder how view.com.

6 grassroots editor • spring 2006 ‘Letters from Readers’ a more appropriate heading

By Ross Connelly over the hills. We’re spread out. a spaghetti supper before a local high We’re in the poorest area of the state, school basketball game or a sign-up call but also one of the most beautiful. People from a coach for Little League should not An old lead slug sits on a shelf above be letters to the editor, but I don’t have a my computer. I rescued it from a box of here farm, work in the woods, commute to blue and white collar jobs, run and work in problem with them. My view is the readers many blocks of photos and fillers that once are using the newspaper as a forum, which graced the pages of The Hardwick Gazette mom and pop businesses or retail stores, but there aren’t a lot of jobs and money so is what I want them to do. Plus, the occa- when it was printed in the basement of our sional announcement letter is too short to building on a single sheet Cottrell Press. some people don’t work at all. There is a blend of native Vermonters and transplants. bury on some back page, and I doubt the This slug has a small drawing of a quill pen individual or group would spring for an ad. resting on three sheets of paper, with the The education levels run from dropouts to words “LETTERS FROM READERS” a few Ph.D.s and M.D.s. Somehow, they For the most part, the letters deal with molded in the lead. manage to live in harmony despite their substantive issues, ranging from budgets, often divergent political views. In non-par- bonds and bombs, to cell towers and pot- I was pleased to find that old slug years tisan local elections, voters elect candidates holes. ago, and remain pleased. I give it a promi- who lean toward the philosophy of nent place at my desk because, in my mind, Recently, a letter writer criticized a Republicans and Libertarians. It is not Select Board for cutting the library budget it represents one of the foundation blocks unusual in legislative, statewide and of journalism in a democracy and a while increasing the police budget. The national races for Democrats to get the nod. sentiment was echoed by another reader. A bedrock reason why I am a journalist. Part Perhaps, because an appreciation for inde- of my responsibility as the editor of this letter called on kids to sign up for a Knights pendence is shared, the area residents get of Columbus foul-shooting contest. A read- newspaper — a big responsibility — is to along. They also write letters to the editor. give space to readers to share their opin- er took exception to the need for a school ions, and I do. We’re a broadsheet, seven SAU bond to expand facilities when the school columns. We run 12-14 pages each week, has a declining enrollment. The issue gen- I look at that old lead block and think of but should only publish 10 if we stuck to a erated a number of views. Four or five the meaning of those words strict ad-to-news-hole ratio. We don’t readers over two-three weeks offered dif- “LETTERS FROM READERS.” The because there’s news to report and the let- ferent opinions about an anti-military block does not say “Letters To The Editor” ter writers have opinions to share. The let- recruitment ad that ran in a local high or “To the editor,” even though that is the ters start on page four, our editorial page, school’s student newspaper. salutation I put on each letter we publish. and usually fill page five. Sometimes they In other issues this winter, a reader The block gives prominence to the reader, carry over from there. expressed concerns about the U.S. Sup- not the editor. The editor — me — is there The Gazette published almost 700 let- reme Court appointment hearings held by to foster the reader, to provide space for the ters last year, averaging 13 a week. The low the Senate Judiciary Committee. A reader reader to have their say. was six at the end of July, there were sev- reported on a recent select board meeting A newspaper, particularly a small, eral issues with seven, but 41 of the 51 in a nearby town, and a person wrote about weekly newspaper in a rural area, has to be, issues published had 10 or more letters. a senior citizens program and appealed for in my mind, a mirror. The newspaper needs The high was 24 letters in a mid-February participants. At least two writers took to reflect back to a community who is in it issue — pre-Town Meeting — and five of exception to a prison sentence handed and what those citizens do and think. We the issues had 20 or more; 17 issues had down in a state criminal trial. A town clerk fulfill part of the responsibility by fair and between 15-18. June and July generated reminded voters of the approaching dead- accurate reporting. We also fulfill that the fewest letters, but issues with letters in line for filing petitions to run for local responsibility by giving citizens a forum to the teens occurred in every month of the offices. A slew of letters were generated in share their thoughts and views with each year. February about a proposal to locate a resi- other, unfettered (to a large extent) by jour- In January this year, we had 15 letters dential mental health facility in a grand old nalists. There’s nothing but white space on one week, 11 the next, and 13 the week inn in a nearby town. Some were for the the newsprint roll each week before the after that. We ran 21 letters the first issue in proposal and others were against it. And newspaper rolls off the press. I know I’ve February and 16 in both issues of the sec- the list goes on. made a good dent on my weekly tasks if ond and third weeks. The numbers balloon The letter writers seem to be a cross sec- the editorial and op-ed pages fill up with before elections; one year we published an tion of the population. They come from the letters from readers. all-time high of about 50 letters a couple of 10 towns covered by the Gazette, with The Hardwick Gazette, with a paid cir- weeks before voters went to the polls. more letters from the towns we cover the culation of about 2,700, covers 10 rural All of the letters are written by local res- most. They range from students to nursing towns having a total population of between idents although the topics are near and far. home residents. The writers work, are 10,000-12,000 people. The closest town to My wife and co-publisher says some of the retired, are in the military, have civilian Hardwick, at least a town that offers more letters should be run as news releases. jobs and no jobs. There are those from than a convenience store, is about 12 miles Perhaps an invitation to the public to attend whom we expect to hear on various topics: away. The closest large towns are 25 miles the anti-war and the support-the-adminis 7 grassroots editor • spring 2006 tration factions have their voices who write, put small filler boxes on various pages invit- with my editorials, but he knew I would if not frequently, at least enough so their ing readers to write. Whenever anyone calls always publish letters from readers who views are familiar. Repeat writers also to complain about something that was in the took exception to what I wrote. He told me include those who want to target the police Gazette, or stops in the office to voice an he knew the Gazette provided a forum for or skewer a town’s government. opinion, I invite the person to put pen to differing views, and because of that he val- About 400 people wrote the letters we paper and send in a letter. ues the Gazette. Every so often, he writes published in 2005. About 130 people wrote One December, lacking an idea for an letters to the editor and also contributes at least two or more letters. Of that group, end-of-year editorial, I went back through occasional articles recounting distant trav- about 60 wrote two letters, 20 wrote three all the letters to the editor from that year and els. I take those contributions and comments and then the numbers fell. Of course, there made a list of the writers’ names. I wrote a as indication we’re doing something right. I were those who wrote all the time, or so it short introduction acknowledging the writ- am complimented by his words. seemed. One person wrote 22 letters last ers and then listed all the names. We had to A reader once told me I shouldn’t publish year — they were his notes of a select board use agate type. The list was impressive in its long-winded letters. He referred to an occa- meeting; a town clerk wrote 16 — mostly length. sional writer who sent in lengthy and reminders to voters of registration dead- I don’t remember any reaction to that detailed commentaries about efforts — lines, dog license due dates and such I’d “editorial,” but I still believe it is important which proved successful — to rip up rail- have rather she put in paid ads, but doubted to tip one’s hat to readers who take the time road tracks that ran through our town. I she would. Better to keep the newspaper a to write and share their views with others. replied I was willing to give the person the public forum than residents devoid of civic Respect the readers and letter writers and space if he took the time to put his efforts information is the way I rationalize that one. maybe they will respect the newspaper. into the letters. I did not see it as my role to Do letters from readers reflect the views Maybe that’s the best way to generate letters restrict what he said. of the broader population? Or do the letters from readers. No, we don’t limit letters to a set word merely come from a select few who are I keep our op-ed pages available for our count. The letters one week in February this civic minded or who want to grind an axe? readers. Our policy is to publish letters from year went from about 250 words to almost From a numbers point of view, 400 people residents of the towns we cover, from sub- 1,000. Sure, some of the letters are too long, who stand up and make a public statement scribers, no matter where they live, and in my opinion, but obviously not in the in an area population of 11,000 works out to from those outside our coverage area who opinion of the writer. Seldom does this almost 4 percent of the population. On my are addressing an article that appeared in the cause a problem, and the page is for letters optimistic days, I lean to the view the letters Gazette. from readers, after all, not opinions from the are representative; my pessimistic days have editor. I know there are a lot of readers who me thinking they are not. All letters must be signed and have an think my editorials are too long, too, and, in address and telephone number. Perhaps, the questions need to be fact, shouldn’t even be printed. They are addressed in the context of a newspaper’s We don’t publish letters that are libelous welcome to share their opinions. role and responsibilities in a democracy. A or slanderous. In line with the above, seldom do I add newspaper can and should advocate and Over the years, I’m sure we received let- an editor’s note beneath a letter. On rare push on the editorial page. On the news ters filled with hate. On the one hand, I occasions, when a letter is flat out wrong in pages, however, a newspaper needs to believe the letters should be published if accusing the newspaper of printing some- report fairly and accurately. My view is that is what the writer believes, but, on the thing it didn’t or claiming we reported good reporting and thoughtful opinion, dare other, I find my own sense of decency says something in error when we didn’t, I follow I say provocative opinion, provide informa- otherwise. I think, publish them and let the two paths. My first response is to call the tion and generate thought — civic aware- letter, metaphorically, shine a light under the letter writer and point out their error. I offer ness. It’s up to the citizens to do with that writer’s own rock to expose their filth. That them an opportunity to change their letter. If what they will. doesn’t make me comfortable, either. I have they don’t want to do that, I offer that I will I cling to the belief a newspaper exists to read each letter and make an individual add an editor’s note explaining their mis- because the public has the right to know the decision rather than make a blanket state- take. Perhaps a bit blunt but letter writers truth and our responsibility as journalists is ment. have a responsibility to be fair and accurate, to provide accurate information and rea- Some weeks, I could print a number of too. Otherwise, my view is the opinions are soned opinion. Let readers sift through it all letters from the people who opine on every- the writer’s and they stand as is. and then act. Some choose to send in a let- thing and send those musings to every Beyond the above guidelines for what ter to the editor. Others speak their mind at newspaper in the state. Come election time, letters to publish, from whom and the a town meeting. Some just vote. Informed I could fill the pages with endorsement let- length, other areas I address are thank you readers make informed decisions — I hope. ters from people in distant towns for every letters and political letters. I am convinced good reporting generates statewide candidate whose name will We don’t publish thank you letters on the letters. Letters also generate letters. When appear on the ballot. I could use up a lot of op-ed pages; they go on the religion page my wife and I bought the Gazette 20 years ink printing letters from interest groups and we charge for them. Thank you letters ago, one of my first tasks was to try to fig- from other parts of the state and from have probably caused me more headaches ure out how to get the readers involved with around the country that want to influence on a consistent basis than anything else the newspaper — to put their opinions on local opinion. I don’t print any of those let- printed in the newspaper. Some of them paper and mail them in for others to read. I ters. They are not local. We are. That’s my thank organizations, most of them thank wrote that in an early editorial and have guide. individuals after an illness or death. They done that more than a few times since. We A reader once told me he often disagreed are important, but they are not opinion and,

8 grassroots editor • spring 2006 generally, are not addressing a public issue. agrees to have their name used. If they casualties any way they chose. That is why I don’t think they are appropri- don’t, they leave with their letter. I have noticed a decrease in the numbers ate to print as letters to the editor. It is fair to Most letters are fairly well written. Some of letters to the editor we receive each week say most people who submit thank you let- are not. Some writers ask me to be sure to since I stopped offering my opinions. We ters accept this reasoning, but those who correct their grammar and spelling, which I averaged 15 before I started printing the don’t, watch out. They can get nasty. do. When not asked, I correct spelling, and soldiers’ names; the average for the rest of We decided a few years back to stop pub- egregious grammatically errors. Also, I do the year was 12 letters per issue. lishing endorsement/political letters in the divide letters into paragraphs when needed. I wondered if stepping back on my part issue before an election. We didn’t think it I will take out profanities beyond the occa- gave readers an incentive to think for them- fair to give one writer that last shot with no sional damn and hell. selves and send their own letters, which chance for another writer to respond. Now Last spring, I stopped writing editorials. some people around here call “editorials.” letter writers send their salvos sooner and Instead, I started publishing the names of Perhaps, it does not. Other newspapers in take a week to unwind before they cast their the American soldiers killed in Iraq and the state — both weekly and daily, rural and ballots. Afghanistan — one could say an editorial urban — have many letters from readers; Letters to the editor in the Gazette must statement in and of itself. Around Memorial my impression is more each day or week be signed and include a telephone number Day, for two or three weeks, I printed the than this time last year. and address for verification. We print the names, in agate type, no ages, addresses or As I mentioned earlier, the Gazette print- writer’s name and town of residence under units, of all those who had been killed. I was ed almost 700 letters in 2005. In the 12- the letter. Occasionally, we receive a type- able to list all the names of the soldiers who month period of September 2001 through written letter with a person’s name but no had been killed up to Memorial Day 2005 in August 2002, the newspaper printed 462 let- signature. I call the letter writer to make that time span. ters. Said another way, we printed 48 per- sure the letter is theirs. I also explain a sig- As I read through the list on various web- cent more letters in the 12 months of 2005 nature is needed to protect them from hav- sites each week, I was struck at how I was than were printed in the 2001/2002 12- ing a letter they didn’t write printed over affected. The names, the ages, the home- month period. Our audited paid circulation their name, and the newspaper for inadver- towns, the ranks, the military units and the in October 2002, which reflected that previ- tently publishing a letter over the name of a cause of death all gave me a sense of loss. I ous 12-month period, was 2,736. Our audit- person who never wrote. Invariably, the let- decided to publish the names each week and ed paid circulation in October 2005 was ter writer thanks me for calling. include that information. They appear in the 2,633, a 3 percent drop. We accept letters by e-mail, with the two column, 10-inch editorial space, in 11- Maybe more people are paying more same requirements about address and tele- point type, under an In Memoriam head. I attention to civic society and expressing phone number, but obviously there is no sig- thought I would easily catch up and get their opinions about what they see and expe- nature. If there is something fishy about a ahead of the causalities in a few weeks. I’m rience than they did a few years ago, even if letter I will call the sender for verification. I still three months behind. fewer are reading their local newspaper. can’t remember ever printing a letter that I mention this because I don’t know how That’s a topic for another study. someone told me later they did not write. it is received by readers. One person told me Perhaps that’s a luxury only available in I look at that small type block sitting last summer he appreciated me giving the above my desk — the block that says “LET- rural America or in a small circulation space to the names. newspaper. TERS FROM READERS.” It took us 20 Another reader this winter seemed to years, but at the beginning of February this Sometimes, but not frequently, a letter take exception to printing the list. That per- year, we changed the headings above the writer will ask me to run a letter with no son sent their own letter to the editor, which letters we print from “Letters To The name. I take this as a chance to give a mini- included a letter they received from a sol- Editor” to “Letters From Readers.” I won- civics lesson. I tell the person we require a dier in Iraq who reported on his success. A der if someone will write in about that? name because the newspaper is a public veteran of the war in Afghanistan asked me forum. If one enters a public forum they about the editorials several weeks ago. He need to be public about who they are. Speak wondered if I were making a political state- Ross Connelly is the editor and co-publish- up and speak out. That’s how a democracy ment. He then answered his own question er of The Hardwick Gazette in Vermont. He is meant to work. Most times, the person by saying readers could take the lists of can be contacted at [email protected].

9 grassroots editor • spring 2006 An open editorial page with few restrictions works best

By Robert Mihalek go too far, are ones that contain personal ited to about 700 words. These columns are attacks. I do allow more latitude for letters usually published when space allows. In that criticize public and elected officials, fact, I like to publish letters before longer “Hey coward, you don’t dare address me than for letters that criticize private citizens. columns, preferring to run more voices publicly, because you know I’ll carve out My paper covers the busy, well-educated rather than louder voices on the editorial your rectum with my steel-toed boot. Here’s page. my answer, you pathetic Republican quis- community of Yellow Springs, in southwest ling: What does being a blood donor have to Ohio, the home of the liberal Antioch There are, of course, exceptions. When do with anything? Obviously it doesn’t College. Most of our readers are over 40, Coretta Scott King, a graduate of Antioch count in your books, but then, you well-read and opinionated. At times, it College, died in February, I made space for Republicans are a selfish, self-serving seems as if every member of our communi- two columns, written by readers. The lot....” ty has an opinion — and each opinion is the columns were timely, well-written, and right one. Our readers are engaged in com- added to the News’ coverage of the death of People read letters to the editor that are munity activities and local (as well as a prominent Antioch alumna. interesting, informative, funny and, at times, national) politics. They pay attention to provocative. People do not want to read let- The News gives preference to letters what our Council is doing, they care about from its readers and community members, ters that are insulting, derogatory and... what’s going on in the schools, they root for Well, OK, people might read those letters, and very rarely publish letters from people the underdog, and they love a good contro- not from Yellow Springs. If we do publish a but most newspapers are not going to pub- versy. lish such submissions, just as I didn’t when letter from someone from out of town, it’s my paper, the Yellow Springs News, recent- The Yellow Springs News publishes on because he or she is a reader, a former ly received the letter that contained the average six to eight letters a week on the Yellow Springer or someone who went to above quote. opinion (broadsheet) page, which we call school here. After we were burned last “Community Forum.” I try to publish every spring by the publication of a letter written The letter was from a Yellow Springs letter that we receive each week. Like most by someone using a pseudonym, I stepped resident who frequently contributes letters newspapers, the number of letters and pages up the News’ efforts to verify letters and to the editor that are almost always provoca- of letters we publish increases at various submitted columns. tive and strongly worded — but sometimes, times during the year. The most obvious as in this case, are harmful and abusive. I The News has a policy of not publishing example is elections. Last fall, when we had letters by writers using pseudonyms, anony- know that many people read his letters. I local elections, the News published 18 let- have talked to this letter writer several times mous letters and letters by writers who ask ters over two pages two weeks before the us to withhold their names. I don’t believe about his habit of generalizing his opinions election. The week before the election, we of groups of people, such as people who it’s appropriate to ever publish an anony- published every letter submitted for that mous letter. If the subject matter of a letter believe in creationism or Republicans, issue: 34 letters on races and ballot issues telling him that it is inappropriate. At times, is important to the community, but a writer over three pages, as well as eight non-elec- does not want to sign his or her letter, the I’ve had to tell him to turn down the rheto- tion letters on a fourth page. ric, stop calling people names and desist topic could be addressed through an article with personal attacks, and instead address During and after the 2004 presidential written by a member of our staff. broader issues or subject matter. The letter election, the News had no choice but to At the News, we do lightly edit letters, that the above quote was taken from was expand the number of letters to editor it making changes that conform with the also inappropriate to publish because the published almost each week. We regularly paper’s style and for some grammatical and writer was responding to one individual published 15 to 20 letters a week, on two punctuation errors. However, my approach who sent him an anonymous note. The let- pages. Since Ohio was a pivotal swing state, to editing letters is not the same as my han- ter writer’s beef was not a public issue. we also received many letters from out-of- dling of announcements and staff-produced town writers, none of which we published, articles. And because our readership is well- Although I am often uncomfortable with since most appeared to be mass mailed. his language or extreme views, I usually educated and well-read, most letters do not Many of these out-of-town letters looked need editing. I don’t think it’s appropriate publish this writer’s contributions, as well the same and used similar language, and as letters from others who express strongly for a newspaper to edit the meat of letters, were probably generated by advocacy Web especially without permission from the worded, even extreme, opinions. What has sites. worked for many years at the Yellow author. If a letter is edited in a more heavy- Springs News is to have an open editorial This doesn’t mean that all letters, or even handed manner, it’s because it contained page with few restrictions. I think that our every word of every letter, are published. offensive, libelous or inappropriate material readers in general prefer that we publish let- We do have a few rules. Letters are limited or language. If a letter contains offensive ters of controversial topics, even if they con- to 350 words. Anything longer can be cut, language, that portion is cut. I usually con- tain harsh language, rather than censoring at my discretion, to fit the space available. sult the writer and explain that part of the people’s opinions. The letters that people The News does occasionally print columns, letter is inappropriate. The writer is offered seem uncomfortable with, and tell me that which we call “Other Voices,” that are lim- continued on page 20

10 grassroots editor • spring 2006 LettersLetters areare best-readbest-read sectionsection ofof newspapernewspaper

By David Cox enforced it only on rare occasions when we writers were “willing to vouch for every couldn’t get all the letters to fit. We now word” of their rants. Our policy is not to enforce it more strictly — but still not publish any letter critical of any specific pri- A reader once complained, with no sense absolutely. vate person or entity — unless it is critical of irony, that the letters to the editor are too of us, in which case we do publish it. We do opinionated. Readers complained about the writers whose letters appear frequently, a couple publish letters critical of public figures and To complain that letters are too opinion- suggesting that writers be limited to a single public agencies. ated is akin to complaining that news stories letter each month. That was actually the ¥ Writers should limit submissions to no are too factual. policy already, but we have since restricted more than once a month. Yet it does raise an important question: it even further; we don’t publish letters from But if they submit more, it gives us a should we publish only letters that are non- the same writer on the same subject in back- choice of which one to pitch. controversial ? That is, light on opinion? It to-back letters, even if they are a month would certainly save editors a lot of apart. ¥ Letters should not exceed 300 words. headaches. At one time a reader in Cherokee Village They often do, and we make no apolo- But the other, entirely predictable result wrote at least one letter a week, sometimes gies for slashing them. However, on that of such a policy would be that no one would two or three, despite the fact that we pub- rare occasion when we deem a writer par- read the letters anymore. Readers read let- lished only one a month. He never com- ticularly articulate or insightful, we bend the ters BECAUSE they are controversial. plained and actually thanked us for the let- rule. But be forewarned, writers who try too That’s sort of the point. ters we did publish. We have always sus- hard to be articulate or insightful tend to be merely wordy and pretentious. Despite the headaches, editors always pected he wrote for therapeutic purposes wish they had more letters. Letters attract more than to get published. ¥ Letters must include the name and phone readers. In fact, readership of letters is high- While we encourage readers to use the number of the writer for verification. er than just about every other item in the opinion page to voice their opinions, we do Anonymous letter writers are the most paper. require that they abide by certain policies, reckless in their accusations against others, This was borne out in an extensive which are usually listed at the bottom of the since they don’t have to take responsibility (though unscientific) reader poll we took a page. That policy, with comments, follows: for what they write. Still, we would break few years ago. According to the poll, letters ¥ Preference is given to original letters not the rule for a writer we thought was making to the editor were read by a whopping 96 previously published. an important statement but who could be endangered or needlessly embarrassed by percent of the 175 readers who responded to We won’t publish letters we recognize as the poll. publishing his or her name. We have yet to produced by public advocacy groups but see a letter that qualified. As for verifica- Letters edged editorials (95 percent) and signed by local residents. Nor will we pub- tion, we don’t promise to confirm author- obituaries (90 percent) and easily outpolled lish letters — which often appear at election ship of every letter, but we do attempt to everything else in the paper except front time — that appear to be part of an organ- verify authorship of every letter with con- page stories. Readership of regular ized letter writing campaign. troversial content. columns ranged from 49 percent to 88 per- ¥ We reserve the right to edit all letters. cent. A sampling of other features: calendar ¥ Letters must be typed or printed legibly. If of events (65 percent), comics (57 percent), We are careful never to alter a writer’s it’s not important enough for you to make weather (54 percent), crossword puzzle (48 intent, but we do sometimes correct your point clearly, why should it be impor- percent), TV listings (20 percent). spelling, punctuation and style errors. We tant enough to us to decipher it? might also cut portions that are repetitious We provided space for poll respondents Newspapers have a rich tradition of or on topics not germane to the subject of facilitating public debate on issues of to write suggestions, which helped us adjust the letter. our letters policy. For instance, 60 percent importance in communities across the coun- of respondents thought there were too few ¥ We refuse publication of letters which con- try through the letters to the editor section. letters to the editor, compared to only 11 tain profanity, vulgarity, libelous statements Responsible editors try to provide objective percent who thought there were too many. or unsubstantiated accusations. leadership on issues through editorials, but At the same time many respondents thought This is the issue that causes editors the honest editors also recognize there are many the letters were often too long, while not a most headaches; someone who has a per- viewpoints on any issue, and the public single respondent thought the letters were sonal grudge against another and wants to good is served by airing those viewpoints too short. use the newspaper to exact revenge is often even when — perhaps ESPECIALLY when so consumed with anger he cannot listen to — those viewpoints are contrary to the edi- Wrote one: “Some people tend to ramble torials. on — please edit them more.” And another: reason. We have been cussed out many “Can’t some that don’t make sense be edit- times for refusing to publish letters that David Cox is editor of Areawide Media in ed? Or left out?” could land both the letter writers and us in Salem, Ark. He can be contacted at round- jail for criminal libel — even though the [email protected]. We already had a word limit but 11 grassroots editor • spring 2006 Letters are so important that I handle them myself

By Dick Drysdale and a closer connection to the newspaper is Sometimes an editor’s note can amplify forged. something the writer has said, or point to In handling letters, my basic principle is other information, but it should never be A couple of years after I bought The critical. Herald from my father in 1971, he asked, respect for the writers. Whether or not I “How do you get so many letters?” It was a agree with them is beside the point. Anyone Also under that category of respect is our memorable moment especially because it writing to my newspaper — even if it’s a editing. Some of are writers hardly know was clearly true that The Herald was pub- furious letter — is paying The Herald a how to write at all, even when they have a lishing more letters to the editor than my compliment. As a result, I try to put myself valuable point of view, so we help. We fix father had generally done in his 26 years at inside that person’s head in dealing with the grammar and of course spelling, and occa- the helm. letter, to really understand the argument or sionally we’ll change a phrase to make it the point of view. When and if I have to cut, more reflective of what we know the writer My first answer (to myself, not him) was I do it carefully, doing no damage to the means, but we don’t change enough to lose that I almost never said “No.” I remembered writer’s thoughts, often making it better by the tone or the flavor. We’ve been tempted over the years that my father had com- sharpening it. I’ve seldom if ever received a to leave in the bad grammar in a letter from, plained about various letter writers whose complaint about my infrequent cuts, in 34 say, a teacher or a politician, but we seldom ideas were just too off-the-wall or irrespon- years. have done so. sible to print or who just had little to con- tribute. Little by little that reluctance to Another mark of respect is to write head- Editorial tone can be important. A slash- print almost everything affected the tone of lines that accurately reflect the writer’s con- and-burn editorial can get a big response (6 the column. The paper lost not only the let- cerns and, if possible, his or her tone. We this week for my editorial of last week, 5-1 ter that was turned down but the one that use two-line single-column heads. I think against me). But in the long run a thoughtful might respond to it, or the one that might they’re better than one-line label heads approach in the editorial column elicits respond to that one. because they pique interest in the letter, just thoughtful letters from thoughtful and intel- as if it were an article. Never must one write ligent readers, people whose letter do credit Thus, my motto became, “print ‘em all.” a headline that casts sarcasm or a question- to your newspaper and benefit your readers. So seldom did I turn down a letter that it ing eye on the writer’s material. Humor is important, too. took me years to informally codify the ones I wouldn’t use. We still continue to use That’s especially true when the editor is Despite the fact that we turn down very almost everything we get, sometimes even being criticized. we should glory in critical few letters, we actually have quite a few teasing a letter to the editor out of a person- letters. They show that people are reading informal rules. In enforcing these rules, we al communication. our work, and they are our proof that to very frequently contact the letter writer readers that we are willing to be fair and directly and he or she is able to change Of the 250-350 letters we receive a year, publish all sides. This week, after we wrote something and make letter acceptable. I turn down maybe eight or 10. The letters an editorial entitled “Shameless,” a writer Usually they are very cooperative and column is extremely important to the paper. took us furiously to task. Our headline on understanding. Here are some of our rules: They may be the best-read section of the his letter reflected his anger. It was “Talk ¥ No more than one letter per month for the paper. They give my readers a feeling of About/Shameless!” ownership over their paper, and they give same person. the readers a window into other people’s And this is the response we got to pub- Of course, no libelous letters. You are as worlds. Many are funny, a few are outraged, lishing the six critical letters last week. A responsible for libel in a letter as in a news others are informative. Some are downright reader wrote: article you wrote yourself. Ironically, the odd. We welcome them all. “You got what you deserved for the mis- better you learn the libel laws the more per- They are so important that I, as editor guided editorial regarding Sanders and missive you can be, because you don’t have and publisher, handle all the letters myself. Venezuelan oil ... But you also deserve the to leave things out “just in case” they may On the rare times, such as vacations, that credit for printing the more eloquent be libelous. others handle them, there are always a few responses in this week’s edition which Even if the material is not legally letters that are put aside as being a little observed its misguidance. Thanks for that, libelous, we do not allow insults, a personal doubtful by a staff that wants to be careful. and thanks for all of the efforts associated attack, or an attack on business practices. If Usually, when I return, the letters go into the with putting together a decent weekly the reader has a legitimate beef with a busi- paper. Because I am handling the letters paper.” ness, it could be the subject of a news story, myself, I get to know my readers. I also And now we’ll put THAT letter in the so that all sides can be told, not just the read- occasionally respond directly, asking for paper. You couldn’t ask for better publicity! er’s. clarification, or cuts, or suggesting that cer- And as most ISWNE people know, it’s ¥ No poor taste. This is our mark of respect tain material is really not appropriate. When generally a no-no to append an editor’s note for our readers. a letter writer gets a response from The to a letter. Just because it’s your newspaper, Editor himself, he or she is usually gratified No “Thank You” letters. This is a tough you do NOT get to have the last word. one, but we do not want our letters column

12 grassroots editor • spring 2006 filling up with boring lists of people to be ¥ Just one or two letters from foreign had “discovered” Bode Miller as a young thanked for their good works. We will use exchange students during their exchange. teen and had given him his first pair of such a letter when it contains substantial We actively solicit these letters and get demo skis. That one could have gone on information along with the thanks — the a lot of them, but a few kids get carried page one, but we like to keep good newsy amount of money raised, who did what, away, so we had to establish a policy. disclosures in the letters, too. etc. and sometimes we ask the writer if we ¥ No dragged out exchanges between letter Of the 47 letters in those seven weeks, can rearrange it a little bit so that it is not some 16 came as direct response to a story obvious a thank-you letter. If there’s no writers. After each has had two shots, we call a halt. in a previous issue. Four came as a way to fix it, we send a letter (now an response to editorials, and four were email) saying why thank-you letters are ¥ No anonymous letters. responses to other letters. impermissible and suggesting they take an For a while we allowed a letter not to be ad. We remind them how much it would In closing, here’s an anecdote about signed if we knew who the writer was, but Helen Smith. cost to send out 6,000 Hallmark cards. we dropped that with no ill effect. When a Often an ad does result. (If anyone wants a letter is written by an organization, we gen- Helen grew up on a farm a LONG time copy of the letter to modify for themselves, erally insist that at least one person’s name ago and now lives in a community on the email me at [email protected]. It’s a be part of the signature. About every five outskirts of our coverage area. Every good letter.) years or so, we do find a legitimate reason month, she sends us a little critique of var- ¥ We will often shorten letters if they get for an anonymous letter, and we explain it ious articles in the newspaper, which often over 300 words. Very subjective this; with an editor’s note. recall for her some scene from her child- sometimes very long letters are permitted. hood or some Bible verse. They’re all ¥ Finally, and I hesitate to admit this, but handwritten and are harder and harder to When we need to shorten a lot, we often it’s true: over the years, there have been a send it back to the writer and let him or her read. They are a bit trite, and one associate very few people whose letters we just editor tried to get me to throw them all out. do the job if they prefer. Otherwise we cut won’t accept. Right now there are two on ourselves — carefully. We’re getting more that list. We know from experience that What we did instead was to send a sensitive about length than we used to be. their “facts” are likely to be wrong and fre- reporting intern to visit with Helen at her ¥ No letters that are answering something quently skirt with libel and, more impor- home. He wrote a story about her and her they read in another newspaper. tantly, that they are consistently negative long life and her compulsion to write let- and want merely to stir up mischief. They ters. It was a delightful story. Just recently, ¥ With a few exceptions, no letters sent out the reporting intern, now 28 and living in to several newspapers. just don’t have anything constructive to offer our readers. London, was married and his photo was in Sometimes we’ll use one, though, if it is the paper. Helen’s letter to the editor informative and coming from a knowl- What do our writers write about? We arrived promptly, exclaiming at the hand- edgeable source that I think can benefit my did a quick survey from the last seven some young man who had come to visit her readers. We just carried one from the gov- weeks, during which we published 47 let- so many years ago and how well he had ernor of Hawaii. ters. Of those 47, 10 were about state issues turned out, and how many thanks were due (Vermont is a small and very close-knit ¥ If a letter comes from our circulation area, to God. We winnowed a few useable sen- state). Six were about national issues, five tences for the letters column and sent the or if we have reason to believe the writer is about local issues, several were informa- a subscriber or former resident, we will run original off to London. It made us all feel tive about programs, and three were about more a part of a big family. the letter. Otherwise, letters from far away individual people. The others were sort of we don’t usually consider legitimate. uncategorizeable. For instance there was Dick Drysdale is editor and publisher of ¥ No letters that are just a second chance at the one that revealed that a former The Herald of Randolph in Vermont. He can a press release for an event. Randolph skier was the ski instructor who be contacted at [email protected].

13 grassroots editor • spring 2006 Current issues regarding letters to the editor By Bill Reader manage and present LTEs, but most of those and they allow personal biases against changes have been minor — providing a bit anonymity to affect professional decisions. Introduction more space, a bit more editing, more but ¥ About a third of special-interest Web shorter letters published each day, special sites that encourage supporters to write Nearly all newspapers in America will forums for letters on specific topics, etc. LTEs provide text for would-be letter-writ- publish letters from readers — even news- None of that is revolutionary, and the few ers that can be copied and incorporated into papers with vestigial editorial pages filled attempts that truly are revolutionary — such letters, a practice journalists call “astroturf.” with canned copy and low-rate syndicated as giving up space for staff editorials and Most of such groups, however, encourage columns will still at least offer space for let- columnists to letter writers, which a few supporters to write letters to the editor by ters (though it’s no surprise that such pages papers tried in the 1990s — have not led to following the guidelines newspaper editors get few, if any, meaningful letters). More widespread reform. But while LTE forums now provide, such as length limitations, importantly, many community newspapers have changed little since the mid-20th cen- authorship requirements, civility, and the to whom the editorial page is the soul of the tury, the world discussed in those letters like. paper will devote considerable time, effort, have changed considerably. Newspaper and resources to cultivate and maintain a readership patterns have changed, attitudes healthy and robust letters section. Those let- about public discourse have changed, and Who writes? ters sections are used in many different the role of LTEs in professional campaigns In 2003, we conducted a national tele- ways by both writers and editors. Writers has become more solidified and more com- phone survey of just over 1,000 American use the forums to participate in public dis- plex. Talk radio and Web-based forums pro- adults and asked them about their letter- course, to promote their views and causes, vide alternative outlets for public discourse, writing habits.3 The survey was inspired by to complain about or heap praise on the leaving editors to wonder whose voices they earlier, limited attempts by scholars to dis- work of newspapers, and many times just to are “losing” from their LTE forums. cern the demographics of average letter vent some steam. Journalists use the letters Meanwhile, the Internet has added a whole writers, which had suggested that most letter to get reader feedback on the job they do, to new dimension to the letter-writing cam- writers have above-average incomes and get a pulse of what issues matter most to paign, providing people with high-tech tools education levels, are middle-aged or older, readers, to give readers a sense of inclusion to spread prepared statements and make and tend to be politically or ideologically in the newspaper production, and sometimes them look like home-grown letters from conservative.4 The problems with those ear- to even make editorial decisions.1 readers. lier studies is that they focused on limited It’s with those devoted newspapers in The research findings summarized below geographic regions and only counted people mind that I have pursued several different are intended to help editors to consider those whose letters had been published — in studies related to “LTEs,” from studies changes as they continue the “holy work” or essence, the “sample” for those studies was about who writes letters to inquiry into how providing forums for public discourse. In highly localized (in some cases, just a single and why journalists select letters for publi- summary, those findings indicate that: town was studied) and was affected by the cation. This paper is a summary of that ¥ The most likely letter writers are over subjective selection criteria of just a few let- research, and I hope the findings will be age 45, have incomes above $40,000, and ters editors. We wanted to overcome those useful to newspaper editors who are com- have attended college. limitations by drawing a national sample mitted to their LTE sections. and by including people who may have writ- ¥ Among those who have not written let- ten letters but had not had them published. Many of the findings in that research ters, 35.1 percent said they would send let- have reinforced many assumptions journal- ters if their names would not be published. We started with a premise that there are ists have about LTEs and have supported the Women, city-dwellers, people aged 18 to 44, three distinct stages in the life of a letter to findings of research conducted throughout and racial minorities all were more willing the editor: authorship, selection, and publi- the 20th century. Specifically, the findings to write letters if their names would be with- cation. Past research had focused on the lat- suggest that letters editors view their LTE held. ter two stages — how editors select letters, forums as important community service and (as mentioned earlier) the demographics tools, as important forums for democratic ¥ The ethical arguments editors use to of those who have had letters published. We discourse; at the same time, editors justify “must sign” letters policies contra- argued that the greatest limitation on earlier acknowledge that LTEs are not always good dict established ethical tenets and proce- “who writes” studies was, by far, the second representations of public opinion, although dures, specifically: they ignore facts about stage, since the selection process involves they like to believe that their LTE sections the historical role of anonymous speech in so many different variables (such as letter are forums for diverse opinions from the American democracy; they do not thorough- length, topic, the news of the day, restric- community.2 Some newspapers have experi- ly apply ethical principles such as fairness, tions on “thank you” and other specific mented with some changes to how they balance, and giving “voice to the voiceless”; forms of letters, even editors’ mood shifts

14 grassroots editor • spring 2006 from hour to hour). Compounding those Those earning $80,000 or more per year about 8 percent of those who read three variables are the individualistic and institu- were the most likely to write letters and times or less per week had their letters pub- tional preferences of each editor and each have them published (40 percent wrote, 25 lished, compared to about 20 percent among newspaper — some are fairly libertarian in percent got published), and those with those who read four times or more. their approaches, allowing many different incomes between $40,000 and $80,000 were ¥ Ideology and partisanship have little views (including controversial views) to be the next most active and successful group of bearing on letter-writing. Our data showed published, while others may be fairly con- letter-writers (about 30 percent of them that Republicans were only slightly more servative, restricting letters to only certain wrote, and about 19 percent of them got likely than Democrats to have written (29 topics and blocking certain viewpoints (for published). Although people with incomes percent vs. 27 percent), and that liberals example, a newspaper I worked for early in below $10,000 were more likely to write were somewhat more likely than conserva- my career would not publish, on direction of than middle-income people (36 percent of tives to have written (33 percent vs. 27 per- the publisher and the executive editor, let- those earning less than $10,000 had writ- cent). Publication rates were similar as well ters that criticized the newspaper). In ten), they were not nearly as successful at — Republicans got published 16.5 percent essence, a “who writes” study based on getting published — just 13 percent had of the time, Democrats 15.9 percent of the actual letters written would have to begin been published. Only about a fifth of those time, while liberals got published 18 percent with a collection of all the letters submitted earning between $10,000 and $40,000 of the time compared to 14.7 percent for to a large number of newspapers, including (about 21 percent) had written letters, and conservatives. All of those findings were the letters that were not published, and then only about 11 percent had been successful in within the margin of error and, as such, the contacting all of those writers. For obvious getting their letters published. differences cannot be considered statistical- reasons, such an approach would not be fea- ¥ Education levels correlate directly ly significant. sible, and even if it were, we would have no with both letter-writing activity and let- idea of who might want to write letters but ¥ Whites are much more likely to write ter-writing success. We found that a higher than non-whites. Among white respon- did not for some reason. So we decided on a education level increase the chances of letter telephone survey. dents, 31.4 percent had written letters, com- writing and getting letters published. Those pared to just 11.2 percent of racial minori- In May 2003, we surveyed 1,017 U.S. with only some high school were least like- ties. And 28.5 percent of whites had their adults. In addition to gathering typical ly to write and to get published (8.8 percent letters published, compared to just 4 percent demographic information (age, sex, race, and 4.4 percent, respectively); those who of minorities. income, education, etc.), we asked each only finished high-school wrote about twice respondent questions related to their news- as much (17 percent) and were twice as like- ¥ Sex and religion do not affect letter- paper reading habits, whether they had ly to get published (9.2 percent); those who writing. There were no significant differ- recently written LTEs, and whether their let- had some college were, again, more likely to ences in letter-writing and letter-writing ters had been published. About one third of write and get published (29.3 percent wrote, success among men and women or religious all the respondents had written letters. We 15.2 percent got published); nearly a third of affiliations. then ran statistical tests on the data to look college graduates (32 percent) had written, All of the above led us to conclude that for significant correlations. Here is what we and nearly a fifth (18.5 percent) had gotten while letter writers are diverse in certain found (keep in mind that all percentages are published; and those who pursued or com- ways — by sex, by political views, and by “within group,” such that they indicate a pleted post-graduate degrees were both the ideologies — they are not diverse in terms percentage of all of the people within the most likely to write (44.7 percent) and the of race, age, income, or (especially) educa- stated age group, income bracket, etc., and most likely to get published (27.3 percent). tion. As was done by past research, these not a portion of people of all ages, incomes, ¥ Community size affects letter-writ- findings pretty much shatter the myth that etc.): ing. Rural residents were slightly more like- LTE forums are true “community forums,” ¥ Middle-aged people are most likely to ly to write than people living in suburbs or and rather reinforce the assumption that be letter-writers. People between the ages cities (small or large), with 32 percent of LTEs are just for the white, middle-aged, of 45 and 64 were much more likely than rural residents having written compared to highly educated middle class. other age groups to have written letters (42 28 percent of suburbanites and 26 percent of percent of respondents between ages 45 and both large- and small-city dwellers. Rural Who wants to write? 54 had written, and 35 percent of respon- residents also were the most successful at One additional question we asked in that dents aged 55-64 had written). About a quar- getting published (20 percent, compared to survey was related to newspapers’ “must ter (24 percent) of people aged 35 to 44 had 15 percent for suburbanites, 14 percent for sign” policies. Previous research has shown written, and slightly more than a quarter of folks in small-cities, and just 10 percent for that nearly all newspapers (95 percent) auto- people over 65 (28 percent) had written. those in big cities). That wasn’t surprising, matically reject unsigned letters, and the College-aged respondents (18-24 year olds) given that many small-town, suburban, and vast majority (85 percent) require names to were slightly more likely to write than 25-34 rural newspapers are likely to publish a be published with letters.5 Now, to be clear, year olds, 18 percent to 13 percent. Among higher percentage of the letters they receive I believe that editors are well founded in those who had written letters, again the 45- than are larger newspapers. their arguments that “must-sign” policies 64 group was most likely to have had their ¥ Letter-writers are frequent readers are a deterrent for many irresponsible, vul- letters published (about 22 percent), com- of newspapers. Just over a third (33.8 per- gar, and even potentially libelous letters, but pared to 17 percent for those over age 65, 13 cent) of those who read newspapers at least having been a letters editor myself, I know percent for those 35-44, and below 10 per- four times a week had written letters, com- for a fact that such letters still make their cent for those 18 to 34. pared to 19 percent of those who read zero way to the mailroom (it’s amazing what ¥ Successful letter-writers are most to three times a week. The success rates some people will sign their names to). My likely to have above-average incomes. between the two groups was striking — only hypothesis, then, is that relaxed “must-sign” 15 grassroots editor • spring 2006 policies would simply result in more diverse 20th century due to editors’ desires to stream- the motives of a writer. More importantly, the letters, including high-quality letters from line the selection process (basically, it was tenet suggests that sometimes promises of people who otherwise would not write letters. easier to cull potential letters by rejecting cer- anonymity are essential to journalistic prac- In the survey, we wanted to see if those tain types from the start, including unsigned tice, not just in news gathering. “must sign” policies had any kind of chilling letters) and to improve the readability of the ¥ “Journalists should ... tell the story of effect on the general population, so we asked letters forums (the assumption being that the diversity and magnitude of the human those respondents who had not written letters signed letters would be more carefully craft- experience boldly, even when it is unpopular (about two-thirds of those surveyed) whether ed and, as such, more enjoyable to read.6 Over to do so.” Again, both anonymous letters and they would write letters if their names would time, many journalists have come to view the newspapers that publish them likely not be published. We had some surprising those “must sign” policies as moral impera- would come under fire from many directions, findings: tives, arguing, in essence, that people who but if publishing such letters allows more aren’t “willing” to sign their names “don’t diverse voices to be heard on the pages, ¥ The desire for name-withheld letters is deserve to have their say,” and that to publish quite high. A full 35 percent of those who shouldn’t newspapers be willing to take the unsigned commentaries would somehow be a criticism? had not written letters (about 250 out of 725 violation of the democratic principles of free people) said they would write letters if their speech. ¥ “Journalists should ... examine their names would be withheld. That suggests that own cultural values and avoid imposing “must sign” policies do, indeed, have a chill- Certainly, anonymous letters can be vehi- those values on others.” If many journalists ing effect on a large portion of the non-writ- cles for unfair attacks, but editors’ fear of believe that public speech is reserved only for ing public. publishing unfair attacks and disdain for those willing to identify themselves, then “cowardly speech” has created a blind spot aren’t they imposing their values on others ¥ Women were more likely than men to toward the potential value of anonymous let- desire anonymity in letters. Among the when they deride and/or ignore those who ters in democratic speech. Ironically, the right want to speak anonymously? “haven’t written” group, 37.5 percent of the to anonymous speech was an important free- women said they would be willing to write if dom demanded by the proponents of the U.S. ¥ “Journalists should ... support the open their names would be withheld, compared to Bill of Rights (some anti-Federalists argued exchange of views, even views they find 30.5 percent of men. that requiring names to be printed with opin- repugnant.” Again, if journalists think ¥ People who live in large cities are ions in newspapers was a “despotic scheme anonymous LTEs would result in “repug- more likely to desire anonymity than peo- of government” and that, as a writer called nant” letters, or if they think anonymity itself ple living in small cities. About 44 percent “Detector” wrote in the New York Journal in is repugnant, are then not violating this tenet of city-dwellers said they would be willing to October 1787, the practice would “reverse by blocking such letters from their forums? write letters if their names would be with- the important doctrine of the freedom of the ¥ “Journalists should ... give voice to the held, compared to 30 percent of those living press” and was “the introduction of this first voiceless; official and unofficial sources of in small cities. trait of slavery into your country.”7 The U.S. information can be equally valid.” As the ¥ Younger people would be more willing Supreme Court under Chief Justice William evidence from the survey suggests, what if to write if their names wouldn’t be pub- Rehnquist has upheld anonymous speech as the only barrier for some of the “voiceless” is lished. Among the 18-44 year age group an important tradition in American democra- a “must sign” policy. which writes relatively few letters, 44.5 per- cy (a key ruling was McIntyre. v. Ohio Now, I’m not suggesting that editors sim- cent said they would be willing to write if Elections Commission in 1995, in which the ply repeal the policies altogether. But if edi- their names would be withheld. Among the Court upheld the right to anonymously dis- tors truly want their LTE forums to be open 45-64 year olds (the age of most letter writ- tribute political fliers).8 marketplaces of ideas, they can make a few ers), the desire for name-withheld letters Beyond the legal right to anonymous modifications to attract new customers: dropped to 35 percent, and the desire dropped speech, newspapers’ “must sign” policies ¥ First, choose letters based on the quality even further to about 20 percent among those also can contradict several ethical standards of their content more than on whether or not older than 65. of journalism. Consider the following tenets the writers are willing to have their names ¥ People with very low or very high from the code of ethics of the Society of published. When selecting letters, editors incomes were more likely to desire Professional Journalists: should start by looking for the most poignant, anonymity. About half of those with incomes ¥ “Journalists should ... identify sources the most original, and the most diverse. Also, below $25,000 and of those with incomes whenever feasible. The public is entitled to as consider whether the identity of the writer is above $80,000 said they would write letters if much information as possible on sources’ essential information — in many cases, the their names would not be published. reliability. ... Always question sources’ ideas in letters are what matter, not the writ- ¥ Racial minorities were more interest- motives before promising anonymity. Clarify ers’ names. That alone would circumvent the ed in writing name-withheld letters than conditions attached to any promise made in unhappy situation in which an editor must were whites. Nearly half (46 percent) of the exchange for information. Keep promises.” publish a so-so letter instead of a great letter minorities who had not written said they While some might read the above as a prohi- that was unsigned. would write letters if their names would not bition against anonymous letters, others • Second, evaluate “name withheld” let- be published, compared to about 35 percent might see that the tenet is an outline for ters the same way you evaluate “anonymous of whites. accommodation of anonymity. Certainly, a source” requests. That is, make sure the per- An earlier research project of mine looked “signed” LTE will have more credibility in son is known to the newspaper, that the per- at the evolution of those “must sign” policies, the eyes of some, but a signature alone does- son agrees to being identified in some and found that they evolved in the mid-to-late n’t assure an editor that the information in a descriptive manner, and the that the person letter is reliable, nor does it necessarily reveal might have a legitimate reason for remaining

16 grassroots editor • spring 2006 anonymous. their general disdain for campaign opera- other words, those groups that promote LTE ¥ Third, publicize your criteria. Editors do tives, more likely due to the deceptive nature campaigns almost all want those letters pub- this all the time in terms of how long letters of the practice. lished in newspapers. The next most fre- should be or what kinds of topics might not Regardless of the motives for and reac- quently suggested “target” was magazines, be published (poetry, thank-you notes, etc.). tions to “astroturf” letters, one big question which was mentioned a scant 11 percent of Perhaps a line suggesting: “The editor will that had not yet been answered is how wide- the time, then TV/radio stations, which was consider requests to publish letters without spread the practice really is. To that end, I mentioned just 6.5 percent of the time — names if the opinions expressed are deemed developed a content analysis study that again, indicating that newspapers are seen as worthy of such protections. Abuses of would focus on special-interest groups that “the” target for letters. Suggestions to send anonymity, such as unfair attacks, incivility, encourage supporters to write letters to the LTEs to “local/small” newspapers occurred or false claims, will not be considered at all. editor, what suggestions they give to would- 67.5 percent of the time, often with com- ments that such newspapers were more like- With a little trial and error, editors might be writers, and whether those groups go so far as to facilitate “astroturf.” ly to publish an individual’s letter than were find that relaxing their “must sign” policies larger or metro papers (only 11 percent of the might not prove to be as onerous as they pre- I limited the study to Web sites that sample suggested sending LTEs to metro dict, especially when you consider that included the phrase “How to write a letter to papers). requiring names to be published with letters the editor.” I drew a random sample of 200 doesn’t guarantee that the content of the let- such Web sites from all the active links ¥ Most special-interest groups recognize ter is reliable — or even that the person sign- returned from the three most popular Internet certain “rules” newspapers impose on let- ing the letter wrote it in the first place. search engines: Google, Yahoo!, and ter writers. Past research had shown that MSN.com. Duplicates and journalism sites most newspapers impose certain limits on were discarded (for example, several news- letter writers, the most common being letter “Turf”? Or “astroturf”? papers’ Web sites offered suggestions to length, frequency (as in, how frequently one The third aspect of LTEs I’d like to would-be writers). On each site, I looked for person can be published), and (as discussed address is the relatively recent concerns different suggestions each group offered to earlier) the writer’s name. Those criteria are among editors related to “astroturf.” would-be writers, from general guidelines recognized by many (and, sometimes, by “Astroturf” is the term many journalists have related to length, frequency, tone, etc., to the most) of the groups that encourage support- applied to letter-writing campaigns in which degree to which each group encouraged ers to write LTEs. About two-thirds (65.5 special interest groups provide pre-written “astroturf” letters. Here are some of the key percent) suggested that letters be short, and letters that supporters can sign their names to findings: many even gave specific word lengths, the and submit as original letters. The practice most common being between 200 and 300 ¥ Political groups are most likely to words; 57 percent reminded writers to sign gained national attention in 2003 when it was encourage supporters to write LTEs. found that the same letter extolling the eco- their names to letters (and 41 percent Ignoring the “astroturf” issue for a moment, explained that the newspapers would call to nomic policies of George W. Bush was pub- the findings give an overall sense of what lished in at least a dozen newspapers across verify authorship); 48 percent suggested that kinds of groups encourage supporters to the writers respond to specific articles pub- the country, each signed by a different person write LTEs. Exactly 50 percent of the groups 9 lished in the target publication; and from 26 from a different community. Since then, sev- from the sample were political groups, or eral newspapers have published editorials to 29 percent of them recommended that groups that were specifically promoting can- writers read published letters policies, that condemning the practice; some have modi- didates, ballot initiatives, or changes in gov- fied policies to reject such letters; and mem- writers be “civil” with their writing, and that ernment policy. The next largest group (27 newspapers will likely reject letters that are bers of the National Conference of Editorial percent of the sample) was classified as Writers routinely use their e-mail listserv to not originals. Those findings suggest two “health/environmental” groups, or groups things that are important when considering share suspect letters. Meanwhile, several spe- promoting research or civil action to address cial interest groups have adopted the practice, the “astroturf” issue — the first, that at least health problems and/or environmental degra- two-thirds majority of the groups in question many with considerable sophistication (for dation. The third-largest group (14 percent of example, the Bush-Cheney campaign used an recognize that newspapers have “rules” for the sample) was classified as “profession- letters; the second, that nearly 30 percent rec- interactive feature on its Web site to help sup- al/educational,” or organizations that were porters “build” letters using several prepared ognize that newspapers routinely reject let- simply interested in spreading awareness ters they suspect of being “duplicates.” passages from which to pick and choose; the about certain professions, hobbies, ethnici- Web site also had an automated system for ties, religions, and the like. Web sites with no ¥ Only a small percentage of groups even packaging and mailing the letters on clear motives were classified as “other,” and actively promote “astroturf,” and only behalf of their supporters). constituted just 8.5 percent of the sample. about a third facilitate it. Most ignore it. To campaigners, the practice certainly has For this part of the analysis, I determined the ¥ For LTE campaigns, special-interest degree to which each group promoted “astro- a lot of appeal — it’s a great way to get a groups target newspapers in general, and carefully prepared message published verba- turf.” Groups that specifically promoted use small newspapers in particular. The find- of prepared text as original letters accounted tim and for free, and to give it the appearance ings show us that special-interest groups rec- of a “grass roots” movement (in fact, the fake for just 15.5 percent of the groups. About 18 ognize that letters to newspapers are some- percent provided “sample text” but gave no “grass roots” aspect is what gives the practice how more valuable than letters to other the nickname of “astroturf”). Some have mention of whether writers should or should media, such as magazines, broadcast news not copy-and-paste the text into their own defended the practice as enabling people to stations, even the Web. About 93 percent of participate in the democratic process. LTEs (I categorized those as “implying” the sample suggested “targets” for LTEs, and astroturf, since they provided the text). Editors, meanwhile, seem to be especially 93 percent of the sample specifically sug- disdainful toward the letters, perhaps due to Together, the “promoters” and the “impliers” gested sending LTEs to newspapers — in accounted for 33.5 percent of the sample — 17 grassroots editor • spring 2006 essentially, one third of the sample could be whole — just 6.5 percent of the whole sam- Another consideration is that requiring likely sources of “astroturf.” Conversely, just ple — it does seem to represent editors’ worst signatures does not preclude deception, in the 6.5 percent of the sample warned writers to fears about “astroturf”: that some special- case of “astroturf” letters. But considering not copy text from other letters (that is, they interest groups are knowingly abusing access the findings that relatively few groups pro- “opposed” the practice). The rest — a full 60 to LTE forums. mote the use of “astroturf,” the industry buzz percent — simply “ignored” the topic alto- about the problem might be overreaction to a gether, providing neither sample text nor any few egregious cases of abuse. At minimum, mention of copying text. Conclusion editors who do routine Web searches to ¥ A surprisingly high percentage of There can be no question that newspapers “catch” such cheaters might be wasting their “promoters” also warn writers to “be orig- take LTEs seriously, or they wouldn’t commit time. Perhaps a better approach would be for inal.” Finally, I compared those groups who so much time, energy, space, and money to a group such as NCEW to maintain a public recognized that newspapers reject “astroturf” providing, editing, and printing the forums. list of organizations that are known to pro- to those groups’ attitudes toward “astroturf.” But when it comes to modifying and updating mote “astroturf,” and categorize the list by Not surprisingly, the vast majority of oppo- their content, newspapers seem to be stuck in the issues such groups are focused on — that nents encouraged originality (92.3 percent), the mid-20th century when it comes to con- way, editors who get a suspicious letter have and a large majority of both “impliers” and ceptualizing their LTEs. a quicker means of determining if it might be “ignorers” made no mention of originality For starters, LTE forums clearly aren’t a “fake.” But as with anonymous letters, I (78 and 79 percent, respectively). What was used by a cross-section of the community, think editors might do well to not be so quick surprising and puzzling, however, was that something that hasn’t changed much since to judge the letter writers who submit “astro- 41.9 percent of the groups that “promote” the mid-20th century. Rather, most LTE writ- turf” — after all, to a culture accustomed to copying LTEs also recognized that newspa- ers are white, middle-aged, educated, and expressing their feelings with pre-printed pers reject copied letters. That seemingly upper middle-class — perhaps suggesting greeting cards and bumper stickers, the idea contradictory condition prompted me to go that those demographics are predictors of of signing a pre-written LTE isn’t necessarily back and look at the originals. As it turns out, newspaper readership, but also suggesting problematic, and may, in fact, be considered many of those sites encouraged writers to that those people are the most comfortable preferable to a “home-done” letter. An “astro- “add your own stories” or to only use only a with expressing their opinions in print. turf” letter is better than no letter at all, and it paragraph or two from the prepared text in an Perhaps LTEs have always appealed to such represents a willingness of somebody to par- otherwise “original” letter. A few noted that people, or perhaps the forums have evolved ticipate in the discussion. With a little adapting the text into original letters would over the decades so that other groups of peo- encouragement, such a person could become circumvent newspapers’ “originality” ple have lost interest in the forums. It could a writer of genuine “turf.” requirements — basically, they encouraged also suggest that confidence might be a factor writers to “cheat.” in letter-writing, since most letter writers are Bill Reader is an assistant professor in the For the optimistic, the findings suggest people who are in their peak work years, with E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio several things. First off, the evidence shows advanced educations and comfortable University. He can be contacted at read- that special-interest groups recognize the salaries. [email protected]. This paper was presented at importance of LTE forums in newspapers The survey offers no suggestions for the Newspapers and Community-Building over all other media, suggesting that LTEs attracting more diverse voices to the LTE Symposium XI sponsored by the Huck Boyd are an information service in which newspa- forums, except in terms of the “must sign” National Center for Community Media and pers are superior to other news outlets, even policies most newspapers initiated in the the National Newspaper Foundation at the the Internet. The study also shows that most mid-20th century. Those policies might be 119th annual convention of the National groups that encourage supporters to write ready for some reform. Several newspapers Newspaper Association in Milwaukee on LTEs probably have genuine “turf” in mind across the nation have experimented with Sept. 29-30, 2005. — they simply want people to speak out on anonymous commentary from the public — an issue, in their own words. And the major- such as the anonymous call-in forums many ity of such groups recognize (some might papers launched in the 1980s and 1990s — Endnotes even respect) newspapers’ guidelines for LTE but research suggests those forums are signif- 1. Ernest Hynds, “Editorial Page Editors submissions, at least in terms of length limits icantly different from true LTE forums, as Discuss Use of Letters,” Newspaper and “must-sign” policies. many are seen more as entertainments than Research Journal 13 (Winter-Spring, 1992): 10 For the pessimistic, however, the findings venues for “serious” discourse. But few edi- 124-136; David Pritchard and Dan point out that nearly a third of the groups that tors seem willing to even think about relaxing Berkowitz, “How Readers’ Letters May encourage LTE writing can facilitate “astro- their “must-sign” policies, even when faced Influence Editors and News Emphasis: A turf,” and more than two-fifth of the groups with evidence that more women, racial Content Analysis of 10 Newspapers, 1948- that actually promote “astroturf” might be minorities, and young adults might submit 1978,” Journalism and Mass Communication knowingly engaged in deception against letters if their names could be withheld. The Quarterly 68 (Autumn 1991): 388-395; Suraj newspapers. The findings also suggest that vulnerability of women and minorities to Kapoor, and Carl Botan, “Studies Compare such groups also promote a blending of harassment, and the insecurities of young How Editors Use Letters,” The Masthead 44 “astroturf” and original letter writing, mean- adults just beginning their work years, might (Spring 1992) ing that editors who want to keep “astroturf” help explain such findings. Perhaps if editors 2. Steve Pasternak, “Editors and the Risk of out of their papers might have to start looking begin selecting letters based solely on their Libel in Letters,” Journalism Quarterly 60 for duplicated sentences and paragraphs quality, and insist that writers reveal them- (Summer 1983): 311-315, 328; Paula C. rather than whole letters. While that “cheat- selves to the editors if not the reading public, Renfro, “Bias in Selection of Letters to the ing” group is a very small percentage of the they might attract more diverse writers. Editor,” Journalism Quarterly 56 (Winter 18 grassroots editor • spring 2006

1979): 822-826; Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, Research Journal 26, 2-3 (Spring/Summer (Summer 1983): 311-315, 328. “Letters to the Editor as a Forum for Public 2005): 43-56. David Pritchard and Dan Berkowitz, “How Deliberation: Modes of Publicity and 10. James Aucoin (1997). “Does Newspaper Readers’ Letters May Influence Editors and Democratic Debate,” Critical Studies in Call-In Line Expand Public Conversation?” News Emphasis: A Content Analysis of 10 Media Communication 18 (September 2001): Newspaper Research Journal, 18 (3-4): 122- Newspapers, 1948-1978,” Journalism and 303-320. David L. Grey and Trevor R. 140. Mass Communication Quarterly 68 (Autumn Brown, “Letters to the Editor: Hazy 1991): 388-395. Reflections of Public Opinion,” Journalism Quarterly 47 (Autumn 1970): 450-456-471. Works cited Bill Reader, “An Ethical ‘Blind Spot’: Problems of Anonymous Letters to the 3. See Bill Reader, Guido H. Stempel III, and James Aucoin, “Does Newspaper Call-In Editor,” Journal of Mass Media Ethics 20 Douglass K. Daniel, “Age, Wealth, Income Line Expand Public Conversation?” News- (1): 62-76. Predict Letters to Editor,” Newspaper paper Research Journal 18, 3-4 (Summer Research Journal 25, 4 (Fall 2004). /Fall 1997): 122-140. Bill Reader, “Should ‘A Citizen’ Have His Say? A Historical Argument for the 4. Sidney Forsythe, “An Exploratory Study Sidney Forsythe, “An Exploratory Study of Publication of Unsigned Commentary in of Letters to the Editor and Their Letters to the Editor and Their Contributors,” ‘Letters to the Editor’ Forums,” (paper pre- Contributors,” Public Opinion Quarterly 14 Public Opinion Quarterly 14 (Spring 1950): sented at AEJMC Washington, D.C., August (Spring 1950): 143-44; William D. Tarrant, 143-44. 2001). “Who Writes Letters to the Editor?” David L. Grey and Trevor R. Brown, “Letters Journalism Quarterly 34 (Fall 1957): 501- Bill Reader, Guido H. Stempel III, and to the Editor: Hazy Reflections of Public Douglass K. Daniel, “Age, Wealth, Income 502; Gary L. Vacin, “A Study of Letter Opinion,” Journalism Quarterly 47 (Autumn Writers,” Journalism Quarterly 42 (Autumn Predict Letters to Editor,” Newspaper 1970): 450-456-471. Research Journal 25, 4 (Fall 2004): 55-66. 1965): 464-465. Ernest Hynds, “Editorial Page Editors 5 Suraj Kapoor, “Most Papers Receive More Bill Reader, “Who’s Really Writing Those Discuss Use of Letters,” Newspaper ‘Canned’ Letters to the Editor?” Newspaper Letters,” The Masthead 47 (Summer Research Journal 13 (Winter/Spring, 1992): 1995):18-22 Research Journal 26, 2-3 (Spring/Summer 124-136. 2005): 43-56. 6. Bill Reader, “Should ‘A Citizen’ Have His John Kaminski and Gaspare Saladino (1981). Paula C. Renfro, “Bias in Selection of Letters Say? A Historical Argument for the Documentary of the Ratification of the Publication of Unsigned Commentary in to the Editor,” Journalism Quarterly 56 Constitution, v.13. Madison: State Historical (Winter 1979): 822-826. ‘Letters to the Editor’ Forums,” (paper pre- Society of Wisconsin: 318. William D. Tarrant, “Who Writes Letters to sented at AEJMC Washington, D.C., August Suraj Kapoor, “Most Papers Receive More 2001) the Editor?” Journalism Quarterly 34 (Fall Letters,” The Masthead 47 (Summer 1957): 501-502. 7. John Kaminski, J. and Gaspare Saladino 1995):18-22. Gary L. Vacin, “A Study of Letter Writers,” (1981). Documentary of the Ratification of Suraj Kapoor and Carl Botan, “Studies the Constitution, v.13. Madison: State Journalism Quarterly 42 (Autumn 1965): Compare How Editors Use Letters,” The 464-465. Historical Society of Wisconsin: p. 318. Masthead 44 (Spring 1992). Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, “Letters to the Editor 8. McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission (1995). 514 U.S. 334; 115 S. Ct. 1511; 1995 as a Forum for Public Deliberation: Modes of (1995). 514 U.S. 334; 115 S. Ct. 1511; 1995 Publicity and Democratic Debate,” Critical U.S. LEXIS 2847 U.S. LEXIS 2847. 9. Bill Reader, “Who’s Really Writing Those Studies in Media Communication 18 Steve Pasternak, “Editors and the Risk of (September 2001): 303-320. ‘Canned’ Letters to the Editor,” Newspaper Libel in Letters,” Journalism Quarterly 60

19 An open editorial page with few grassroots A journal restrictions works best from page 10 for newspeople a chance to rewrite the letter, otherwise the inappropriate portion is editor Published by the edited out. International Society Lately, the News has been receiving more letters inviting readers to of Weekly Newspaper Editors events, such as fundraisers or political or community meetings. Many of these also express an opinion. We use the information from the let- ters (about the event only) to produce announcements, which we place on our calendar page. Invitation letters are published on the opinion page when space is available. However, such letters do not receive preferential treatment over more traditional letters, especially if the Please send invite letters contain no hint of opinion whatsoever. I’m not sure why the News has seen an increase in invitation letters, although I assume it’s because our readers know the opinion page is widely read and your submissions to: because we actually publish these letters. In 2003, I changed the letters policy by allowing the publication of thank you letters. This was done as a compromise after many readers Dr. Chad Stebbins told the paper that they wanted to use the News to say “thanks” pub- licly. Thank you letters, or what we call “letters of appreciation,” must pertain to a subject of public interest, such as community events and Institute of organization and public institutions. We require more personal letters International Studies of thanks, such as those thanking an individual for an act of kindness, to be expressed as advertising. Traditional letters to the editor, which Missouri Southern are an expression of readers’ opinions, still take precedence over letters of appreciation. State University One feature that we publish at the end of the year is to list the name of every person who contributed to the News by writing a letter, col- umn, review or article during the year. In 2005, we listed 335 people. This feature, which was started by a previous editor and which I’m proud to continue, serves as a great way to thank readers for writing to the News, and gives us a chance to brag about the number of people who helped make our editorial page an active community forum. If your newspaper does not have such a tradition, I suggest you start doing this, at the end of 2006. (417) 625-9736 Robert Mihalek, a member of the ISWNE board of directors, is editor of the Yellow Springs News in Ohio. He can be contacted at rmi- [email protected].

3950 East Newman Road Joplin, MO 64801-1595

[email protected] 20 grassroots A journal editor for newspeople Published by the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors

Institute of International Studies Missouri Southern State College 3950 East Newman Road Joplin, MO 64801-1595 (417) 625-9736 www.grassrootseditor.org