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Letters to the editor are one way to get your voice heard in the media. They present your perspective in a local newspaper and can be used to offer a counter argument to articles you disagree with. They will reach a large audience and create an impression of widespread support for or against an issue. Letters to the editor are also important because they are monitored by elected officials and other decision-makers. This can be your opportunity to show your legislator what his or her constituents think about an issue.

Letters to the editor are free and can be submitted by many people. The more volunteers you have submitting letters on an issue, the more likely it is that one of the letters will get printed.

When writing letters to the editor:

 

Be direct. Make one point (or two at most) in your letter. Letters are often edited; state the point clearly in the first paragraph.

Be short and concise. One hundred fifty to 200 words, or less than one typed, double-spaced page. Check with your local paper for their limits.

Write no more than three or four short paragraphs. In the first paragraph, mention any previous coverage of a story that you are responding to. The second paragraph introduces something personal and states your side of the argument: "As someone who has kidney disease.".

Be timely. Address a specific article, editorial, or letter that recently appeared in the paper you are writing to or a recent event. Refer to the title, date, and author of the piece you are agreeing with or disputing.

Support your facts. If the topic you address is controversial, consider sending documentation along with your letter, but don't overload the editors with too much information. Refute or support specific statements, address relevant facts that are ignored, and avoid attacking the reporter or the newspaper.

Local Angle. To explain the issue's local or personal impact, look at the letters that appear in your paper, is a certain type of letter usually printed?

Know Your Audience. Familiarize yourself with the coverage and editorial position of the paper. Be professional-- this is not a letter to a friend. Write for the community who reads the paper (do not try to discuss technical terms if the audience will not know the technicalities of the issue).

Maximize your letter. Send your letter to neighborhood, alternative, high school and college papers-- the smaller the publication the more likely it will get published.

Encourage others to write. If your letter does not get published, perhaps someone else's letter on the same topic will. Stagger mailings a few days apart for a current topic or weeks apart to spur general interest.

Submit the letter via postal mail, fax, or email, depending on your local media's preference.

Adapted from: Bray, Robert. Spin Works!: A Media Guidebook for Communicating Values and Shaping Opinion, 2000.