By now probably everyone on this campus and the surrounding area is sick and tired of hearing about New Year's Resolutions, the start of the new quarter and all the minor changes associated with starting the year off right.
It is with my deepest apologies that I introduce one more. At the beginning of Fall Quarter you might remember that I wrote a little piece, not unlike this one, making an impassioned plea for citizens to write letters to the editor and guest commentaries to The Post. Well, I return today to address our faithful, and not so faithful, readers, that after careful deliberation and numerous top-secret meetings, The Post has modified its procedure in handling letters and commentaries.
Although the basic tenets of the procedure have remained unchanged, no longer will The Post publish the e-mail address of letter writers, but instead only their names and where they write from (ex. Albany, Cleveland, etc.); or, if you are from Athens, we will include your street, dorm or apartment complex. A minor change yes, but we at The Post hope that it will help facilitate an open dialogue among our precious readers.
Translation: Everyone with an opinion has a chance to get their point of view across whether they are students, alumni, faculty, local residents or the random online reader.
So instead of a reader addressing a letter writer personally, the dialogue can be carried on in a public forum. That way the opposite or third party view point has the potential to reach just as many people as the original letter or opinion did.
It is imperative to outline for the reader, and potential writer, about how The Post processes and prints the letters it receives. As associate editor, one of my responsibilities is to read submitted letters, confirm that the writer did indeed write the opinion, and make minor grammatical changes to conform to the newspaper style. That way an opinion can be presented in a professional manner, and the reader is assured that the letter is actually a reader's opinion and not just a carbon-copy persuasive piece submitted in mass to publications by special interest groups. The reader can then be reasonably assured that the diverse viewpoints expressed are truly representative of the public at large.
Also, as always, letters can be anywhere from 350-600 words in length and, as stated before, on any range of topics. As an organization, The Post seeks to print as many letters as possible given our Opinion Page's space restraints, and therefore most letters we receive are printed on a fairly timely basis. The only time letters will not be considered for publication are if they are extremely unprofessional (i.e. rampant name calling and profanity-laced tirades), do not contain a phone number at which the writer can be reached to verify that they did indeed write the letter, or if the letter already has been published in another publication.
So, on behalf of The Post, I urge our readers to make their opinions known through a medium that can reach a large section of the general public. The tool of mass communication is at your disposal. As concerned citizens it is your right - and duty - to be active in the shaping of this world.
Sounds preachy I know.
Nevertheless, it is like having the right to vote and choosing not to exercise it. No one is going to come to your door and chide you for not being an active part in democracy, but they probably won't listen to you either when you complain about the state of the country.
The decision is yours, and so is the means. We just provide that means free of charge.
- Dan Rinderle is a senior journalism major. Send a letter to the editor at posteditorial@ohiou.edu.
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Letter to the Editor
