It’s the political season for 2022 when candidates and readers start writing letters to the editor supporting or opposing candidates. In fact, we have received communication from an elected official inquiring about this newspaper’s letter to the editor policy to update their supporters.
However, these types of letters are really not letters to the editor.
Letters to the editor are expressions of personal views on matters of current public debate and consideration. Newspapers publish letters to the editor as part of a commitment to the community to provide a civil and productive forum for opinions, with the belief that from many ideas the best solutions can emerge to our many shared problems.
As for all of those “vote for,” or “vote no on,” letters that inundate newspapers’ mailboxes, inboxes, and opinion pages in the run-ups to every election: They hardly fit the definition of a true letter to the editor. Instead, they are, often, an attempt by political candidates and their campaigns to take advantage of a newspaper’s sense of public responsibility and to monopolize a limited public space (opinion pages) to reinforce a candidate’s name recognition while squeezing out the competition.
Recognizing that, in Feb. 2020, the Pioneer Review started treating such “letters” as what they are: paid political content. Campaigns and political supporters can still have them published, but for a nominal fee.
This will include:
Any letter that endorses, or disapproves a candidate, ballot measure, or proposition
Any letter that disparages a candidate or notes a candidate’s faults, etc.
A letter by a campaigning politician, their staff, or volunteers
Any letter that hits one way or another at an initiated measure or ballot issue
Any letter that is obviously for or against a political party.
To place such content, simply email your letter to news@colusacountynews.com, or deliver your letter to our office, located at 430 Market St., Suite G, in Colusa. Letters must include the author’s name, and city of residence. Letters must be submitted by 3 PM on Monday for the Thursday publication.
The fee for placing personal endorsements is $25 for the first 250 words, and $10 for each 100 words thereafter. This is not a windfall for the newspaper, but simply a way for readers to help pay the cost of a potentially high volume of letters received in the coming weeks that will increase staff time and newsprint, neither of which is not free for any newspaper.
The paid plugs will be published weekly and will be clearly marked as “Paid Political Endorsements.”
Please note, this applies only to political endorsements or non-endorsements of candidates, measures, and propositions. Letters to the editor on matters of current public debate – letters that truly contribute to the critical community conversations we need to be having – are still allowed under our current policy. Readers are urged to continue writing traditional letters to the editor about issues that focus on pertinent and timely issues. We will continue publishing letters praising or criticizing issues before public bodies, like city councils or county boards. Submit letters to news@colusacountynews.com.
We look forward to hearing from our readers concerning their candidates and issues of their choice during the election 2022, and will be publishing a special election edition on Thursday, Oct. 27. For those wishing to publish their letters, or take out paid advertisements, the deadline is noon on Friday, Oct. 21 for submissions. Please contact lloyd@colusacountynews.com for more information.■