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Topic: Should I read letters to the editor?
| Author | Message |
| clipster | Posted – 8/25/2008 9:46:57 PM | show profile My first print piece is coming out soon, and it's about a controversial topic. There was no way I could cover every single point of view on this topic, so I focused on the main issues, which were representative and interesting. I'm almost certain there will be letters to the editor both supporting and (possibly) slamming the article and possibly lil' old me. Should I read the letters that follow? Could it be educational? Will it just frustrate the @#$^ out of me that I know how to answer the person, but didn't have room to address every single point in the original article? What do *you* do? |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 8/26/2008 1:52:17 AM | show profile Well, I've written hundreds of stories for about 150 publications, and few of them (even the controversial ones) get many letters. No harm in reading them. My guess is, in the future, as more publications go online, part of the writers job will be to engage in conversations with readers about the articles. |
| caitlinkelly | Posted – 8/26/2008 8:12:44 AM | show profile Because it's your first piece,you're psyched and that's natural. But few people ever respond to stories, even the most controversial. The truly rabid, on either side, will Google you and email. |
| HisGirlFriday | Posted – 8/26/2008 10:07:05 AM | show profile I'm always interested to hear what people think about stories I've covered. Some stories have generated dozens of letters, emails, calls, etc. Others that I had hoped would spark a discussion barely caused a ripple. Go figure. Since this is your first time - it's natural that you will probably take it all to heart. It *will* be educational and interesting and infuriating. But you'll get used to it. |
| Louisewasnothalfbad | Posted – 8/26/2008 12:21:03 PM | show profile If it also appears online and the site allows comments, be prepared to be flamed. I've been through this myself, writing for a national chain of alt-weeklies. No matter how even-handed your piece is, some people just live to post nasty comments. I read them, and was able to laugh off most of them. Most not all. |
| abqwriter | Posted – 8/26/2008 2:17:27 PM | show profile | email poster I was visiting with a columnist recently who had written an excellent opinion piece which ended up angering a few readers. They didn't write letters to the editor; they called her boss and asked for her to be fired. (Her boss backed her up.) People rarely write if they like what you've written; they only get motivated if they get pretty ticked off. Even then - most of the time they still don't write. I wrote a humor diet column for a couple of years until the paper closed, and most of the email I received came from people pitching their own products or services. Some emailed me wonderful, poignant stories or sent me short notes. One "concerned reader" suggested that I get therapy so I could stop beating up on myself in public (had they never read Erma???). I still maintain the companion blog and receive comments and email on that. People will post on blogs or via email, but few collect their thoughts well enough to write a letter to the editor. In fact, despite the fact that my column had a national following and was one of the paper's most popular as far as online hits, there was not one letter to the editor in two years. So, if your piece generates any letters, take it as a compliment that you wrote well enough to provoke readers to action. Just don't take the attacks personally. |
| clipster | Posted – 8/28/2008 5:06:42 PM | show profile Ahhhh. I'm a little embarrassed to have assumed people would write in about my story. Thanks for the thoughtful responses. If anyone does write, I'll keep your comments in mind. |
| Suet | Posted – 8/29/2008 1:54:08 PM | show profile You can also use any feedback you get to examine different aspects of the topic in a subsequent article. |
