Op-Ed Writing For Print and Online Publications

WHEN 8 weeks, November 9 - December 28 Online chats: Mondays, 9-10 pm EST WHERE Online. Click here for detials. LEVEL Intro PRICE $499 ($475 for ) more info

Course Details

A well-written, well-placed op-ed essay can make your voice heard in print, online, and around the world. You can shape the public debate. And you don't have to be a well-known expert to get published. In fact, an op-ed can make you an expert.

The op-ed page is the most sought-after real estate in any publication. And there are more venues for your work as newspapers, magazines, websites, and blogs expand their first-person content. There are lots of opportunities for authors to showcase great writing while laying out forceful arguments.

This class covers the basics of writing brilliant op-ed essays. Students will learn from powerful examples taken from the nation's leading publications and will write and submit three pieces of standard length, each about 700 words.

By the end of this class, you will have:
Three op-ed pieces (up to 700 words) with pitch letters and suggestions on where to pitch them.

Students who have taken this class have been published in:
Huffington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, the New York Daily News, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, and others.

The online classroom has several interactive components:

• Instructors post lectures once a week. You can read them online, print them, or download them at your convenience.
• Students post completed assignments for feedback and discussion by the instructor and class.
• Weekly chats allow your class to get together via instant message. Transcripts are available for review if you can't attend.
• Technical support is available from mediabistro staff.

Course Syllabus

Op-Ed Writing (PDF) View a sample syllabus for this class here.

Related Courses

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Journalism

Instructor Bio

Lionel Beehner's Courses

Lionel Beehner is formerly a senior writer for the Council on Foreign Relations. He currently writes about U.S. foreign policy for the startup Big Think. His writing has appeared in the op-ed pages of The New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Newsday, Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, The New Republic, Foreign Policy, Russia Journal, Kiev Post, Seed, and Worth magazine. He writes a weekly blog on foreign affairs at the Huffington Post. His commentary has appeared on CNN International, BBC Radio, CNBC's Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo, C-SPAN's Washington Journal, CBC, Bloomberg TV, and Voice of America, as well as The New York Times Magazine, Washington Times, Newsweek International, and Weekly Standard. He was the 2006 recipient of a German Marshall Fund journalism fellowship for a research project on post-Soviet youth movements in Ukraine and Belarus. He holds a master's degree from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs.

Testimonials

Lionel's experience in the field both here and abroad definitely informs his discussion and the pointers he gives. -- Heather Chin

"Lionel knows exactly what he's talking about and has an impressive roster of published pieces. I got an op-ed published in The Los Angeles Times and syndicated as far away as Australia! Now I have the confidence to keep putting myself out there." -- Mary Kolesnikova

"Lionel is engaging, incisive, friendly, and throroughly knowledgable about the field. I'd recommend this course to anyone who is intersted in breaking into op-ed writing." -- Alex Andrews

"The class provided useful tools to both develop and hone op-ed writing skills. Lionel's excellent background enabled him to provide current, relevant information on all the areas that the class was interested in pursuing." -- Renee Fountain

"Lionel is an accomplished op-ed contributor who is happy to share his talent to help his class get their op-eds published." -- Martha Katzeff

"Lionel is a very successful op-ed writer, and when I read such pieces of writing now I will have a better sense of what went into them. It was very useful to learn how to pitch an op-ed." -- Ruth Papazian

"Lionel blends talent with experience, selflessness with tirelessness. Anyone wishing to enter the field, or to advance in it, should take one of his courses." -- Frank A. Campbell

"I would highly rate this class as an A+. Lionel is a wonderful, fun, and honest editor, as well as a classy guy who gives us the real scoop on how to get a pitch to work." -- Donna DeLeno Neuworth

"Lionel is a wonderful instructor. He really is the ideal teacher. He's extremely knowledgeable and passionate about his subject and he cares about improving his students' skills. I highly recommend his course." -- Lonzen Rugira