I’m glad to know that my stuff will once again
by sharing journalistic space with Jonah’s, once we start running his column
in the Dallas Morning News (I wish we could have him on our
blog too). Pay close attention to
what he said about letting your local editors know what you think of his, or
anybody else’s, column. I’m on the editorial board of the DMN, and we do pay
attention to letters from readers. I can’t tell you how discouraging it is
to hear from readers who complain about liberal bias, but then when you ask
if they’ve written a serious, substantive letter to the paper’s editor, or
editors, outlining their concerns and making suggestions for changes that
would bring about more balanced opinion coverage, they say no. There are
editors (I work for one) who really do want to provide a more fair and
balanced selection of columnists and opinion writing to the readership, and
when they make a good call (like picking up Jonah’s column, or Rich’s), then
by all means write them and let them know!
A Corner reader in Denver sent me this
column today, in which a conservative talk radio host
laments the left-wing uniformity of his town’s features columnists. The
reader wanted to know what could be done to rectify this kind of situation.
My suggestion is to get the e-mail addresses of the following people: the
paper’s publisher, editor-in-chief, and editor of the section that concerns
you (and pass them on to your friends). Write a polite, funny, well-informed
and well-documented letter explaining what you think the problem is, and
what you’d like them to do to be more responsive to the readership. Be sure
to include lists of your favorite columnists, and why you find those writers
interesting. Don’t just assume that your local newspaper hierarchy is filled
with liberal jerks who won’t listen to you. They may be, in which case you
have my permission to go t.p. their house. But it’s better to try reason and
persuasion first, rather than just sitting back and whining.