Letters to the Editor & Op-Eds
You don’t have to hold an event or send a news release to draw attention to your organizations priority issues. There are many other tools you can use to gain visibility and promote your organization’s priority issues.
Letters to the Editor
Writing letters to the editor of your local paper is a great way to energize coalition members, promote your organization’s visibility in the community, and spread the word about important issues. Letters to the editor (LTEs) can be used to correct and clarify facts in a previous news story, oppose or support the actions of an elected official or agency, direct attention to a problem, spur news editors to cover an issue that is being overlooked, or urge readers to support your cause. LTEs are especiallyeffective in local, community papers. You can send letters by fax, e-mail, or through the mail.
Tips on Effective LTEs
- Pick a timely topic: Newspapers rarely publish letters on topics that are not already being covered in the news.
- Assume nothing: Do not assume that your readers are informed on your topic. Give a concise but informative background before plunging into the main issue. Refer to any newspaper article or editorial to which you are responding by date and title. Also include
any relevant credentials that prove you are informed about your topic.
- Be brief. State your position as succinctly as possible without eliminating necessary detail. Most papers limit LTEs to around 250 words.
- Find a local angle: Readers are more interested in an issue when they see how it affects their lives and communities. Show how your issue will affect this particular readership.
- Avoid form letters: Do not send the same letter to two competing papers in the same circulation area, or many copies of an identical letter to a single paper.
Opinion-Editorial Pieces
Opinion editorial (Op-ed) pieces, are printed "opposite the editorial page" and are written by community leaders and syndicated columnists, not by the newspaper’s staff writers. Op-eds are lengthier than LTEs and are somewhat more substantive pieces, averaging 700 words in length. Op-ed articles can be very influential in shaping public debate, and can serve as stepping stones to interview requests. Contact the newspaper’s op-ed page editor and ask for theirguidelines.
Tips on Effective Op-Eds
- Pick a Timely and Local Topic: Op-eds should relate to a current event and have a definite point of view, but they should not be reactions to a published article (use LTEs for that purpose). Choose an issue that has a local impact, and use a specific person, group or event to show how your community is affected.
- Research Guidelines: Most papers have a length limit on op-eds. It is usually around 700 words, but be sure to find out before you begin writing.
- Include a cover letter: Include a concise, one-page cover letter with your submission explaining why the op-ed is important to the newspaper’s readers. If you are sending your op-ed to more than one paper, be sure to mention that in your cover letter.
- Focus on One Idea: Concentrate on one theme or issue and organize your thoughts in a clear and logical order. Present the issue in the first paragraph and offer suggestions in the second or third paragraphs. Limit your paragraphs to two or three sentences, avoid technical terms and insider jargon, and back up assertions with facts.
- Get a Signatory: Most papers prefer printing op-eds written by a local authority or community leader. Having your organization’s office holder or coalition member with expertise on the topic sign your op-ed will make it more likely to be chosen.
- Follow-up: If you do not hear anything from the paper within a few days of submitting your op-ed, call to make sure it was received.
