When it comes to opinions, we want yours in our Letters to the Editor
One thing we know for certain – Kentuckians aren’t averse to voicing their opinions.
If it’s about sports, politics or food, Kentuckians don’t usually back down from telling you how they feel. And don’t even get some of you all started on the value (or lack of thereof) some politicians, or whether or not you should put sugar in cornbread.
Lately though, it seems there’s been a decline in the number of Letters to the Editor we’re receiving. We know it’s not because you all stopped having opinions. Anyone with access to Facebook can see that’s not the case.
Over the past six months, we’ve printed letters from 4th graders and octogenarians. We’ve printed letters about libraries, basketball, Queen Elizabeth, book banning, a few Presidents, the Fourth of July fireworks, U.S. Congressmen, disaster aid, gaming, horses, farmers’ markets and everything in between. But there’s still more out there we know you want to talk about.
And we’ve received plenty of letters that contain the phrase, “I know you won’t print this because it doesn’t agree with you.” We’ve printed every one of them.
That’s because we want divergent opinions. We want to show all sides to the story. Let’s be clear – opinions from readers are one side of a story. Whether the story is a disagreement between coaches, a new restaurant coming to town or a change in zoning laws, what people have to say is sometimes just as important as the story itself.
And we want to hear opinions from all over the state. We get letters from Maine to California, but our focus is on the letters that come from Kentuckians, because that is who the news in our area affects most. We want to hear from the people whose taxes are impacted by decisions legislators and council members make, or whose daily lives are changed because of highway construction projects.
Now, we can’t publish letters that aren’t based in fact, and we’re not going to let you try your court case in the editorial section. But we can print letters about your disapproval of roundabouts, or your support for a particular charity, or your concerns over motorcycles that fly up and down Man o’ War Boulevard. You’d better believe, if it’s an opinion you hold, someone else likely holds it too.
Anyone with a background in activism will tell you that writing letters to the editor is an essential part of getting the word out. Why? Letters to the editor reach large audiences and allow the letter writer to bring up information that may not make it into a news article. When newspapers do surveys on what gets read the most, letters to the editor are in the top five most widely read section of the paper. Add to that the fact that elected officials often monitor letters to the editor as a way to gauge a community’s feelings about a particular issue, and you can see that your opinion can make a difference.
So here’s what you need to do –
Get the phrase “Nobody cares about my opinion” out of your head.
Keep your letter to 200 words or less.
Refrain from name calling, personal attacks and wild allegations.
Send in the letter however you can – the submission form on the web site under Opinion on the website menu or email hleditorial@herald-leader.com.
Include your name, address (not for publication) and a way to get in touch with you.
We’ll handle the rest.
Your opinion matters. And we want to help you let others know what that opinion is.
Liz Carey is a freelance writer who also compiles the Herald-Leader’s Letters to the Editor every week.