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- C.A.R.E. Home
- Mission Statement
- Generating Public Support
- Alameda Harvey Milk Day 2011
- Questions and Answers from Board of Education Candidates
- C.A.R.E. Film Festival
- Election 2010
- News Section
- GLSEN: 2009 National School Climate Survey
- C.A.R.E. Literature List Recomendations
- AUSD Anti Bullying Literature. List
- Harvey Milk Day in Alameda
- Talking Points
- CARE Recommendations for the AUSD Curriculum
- Detailed Care Recommendations
- Advocacy
- Religion and the LGBT Community
- AUSD Lesson # 9
- Editorials
- Groups In Support
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Generating Public Support
One of the key goals of C.A.R.E. is to generate public awareness of our issues that can translate into public support. We are fortunate in Alameda to have two local newspapers focused exclusively on news of our community. Both newspapers offer opportunities for concerned citizens to express their views in print through letters to the editor and longer opinion pieces. Below are guidelines that will help you become an effective C.A.R.E. advocate by using these forums to express your views.
Letters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor in local newspapers like the Alameda Sun and Alameda Journal are an effective way to generate public awareness of issues important to you. Letters to the editor are the most popular and well-read section of the newspaper and provide a free forum for the exchange of ideas.
Letters to the Alameda Sun should be sent via email to editor@alamedasun.com. Letters to the Alameda Journal should be sent to ajletter@bayareanewsgroup.com. They should be receive no later than noon the Monday before the paper is published; earlier is better. Always include your full name, address and telephone number. The editor may call you to verify that the letter actually came from you.
Both local newspapers realize that their Letters to the Editor section provides an important public forum, and both strive to print every letter they receive. Newspapers like the Oakland Tribune and San Francisco Chronicle receive hundreds of letters a week and must be more selective. It is your goal to make it as easy as possible for the newspaper to print your letter so that it is published as quickly as possible. It is also your goal to be sure that your letter is read and understood once it is published. The following guidelines should help you achieve both goals:
Keep it short: A letter of 200 words or so has a much better chance of being published and read than one with 500 words.
Keep it local: Letters about Alameda issues are much better read than letters about state, national or international issues.
Keep it positive: Readers will be more likely to consider your opinion valid if you promote it without disparaging the other side or resorting to name-calling.
Keep it factual: The more facts you can include in your letter, the more credibility it will have.
Keep it clear: Summarize your point of view succinctly early in the letter (the first sentence or paragraph if possible) and reiterate it in the closing.
Keep it timely: Write your letter while the issue is current, not later when interest has lagged.
Keep it fresh: Don’t repeat what other letter writers have said on the issue; come up with a fresh perspective.
Opinion pieces
If you find it difficult to express your thoughts effectively in a short letter, you can consider a longer opinion piece. Both the Alameda Sun and Alameda Journal will print longer columns if they are well-written. Submissions to the Alameda Sun can be sent to editor@alamedasun.com. Submissions to the Alameda Journal should be labeled “My Word” and sent to ajletter@bayareanewsgroup.com. As with letters, include full name, address and phone number. Deadline is noon Monday, but earlier submission is better. Due to space limitations, not all columns can be published.
The same guidelines above for Letters to the Editor apply to longer opinion pieces, except that word count should be 400-500 words. In addition, consider these tips:
· Concentrate on one main idea or single theme.
· Express your thesis clearly early in the piece (the first paragraph, if possible) and reinforce it in the last paragraph.
· Organize support for your thesis around three to five key supporting ideas. Introduce them with short bold face sentences if possible.
· Back up any claims with facts; be sure the facts are correct.
· Write in the third person unless your thesis is supported by personal experience.
· Use active verbs rather than passive ones.
· Include a brief biography of yourself at the end of the column, indicating the basis for your expertise.
One of the key goals of C.A.R.E. is to generate public awareness of our issues that can translate into public support. We are fortunate in Alameda to have two local newspapers focused exclusively on news of our community. Both newspapers offer opportunities for concerned citizens to express their views in print through letters to the editor and longer opinion pieces. Below are guidelines that will help you become an effective C.A.R.E. advocate by using these forums to express your views.
Letters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor in local newspapers like the Alameda Sun and Alameda Journal are an effective way to generate public awareness of issues important to you. Letters to the editor are the most popular and well-read section of the newspaper and provide a free forum for the exchange of ideas.
Letters to the Alameda Sun should be sent via email to editor@alamedasun.com. Letters to the Alameda Journal should be sent to ajletter@bayareanewsgroup.com. They should be receive no later than noon the Monday before the paper is published; earlier is better. Always include your full name, address and telephone number. The editor may call you to verify that the letter actually came from you.
Both local newspapers realize that their Letters to the Editor section provides an important public forum, and both strive to print every letter they receive. Newspapers like the Oakland Tribune and San Francisco Chronicle receive hundreds of letters a week and must be more selective. It is your goal to make it as easy as possible for the newspaper to print your letter so that it is published as quickly as possible. It is also your goal to be sure that your letter is read and understood once it is published. The following guidelines should help you achieve both goals:
Keep it short: A letter of 200 words or so has a much better chance of being published and read than one with 500 words.
Keep it local: Letters about Alameda issues are much better read than letters about state, national or international issues.
Keep it positive: Readers will be more likely to consider your opinion valid if you promote it without disparaging the other side or resorting to name-calling.
Keep it factual: The more facts you can include in your letter, the more credibility it will have.
Keep it clear: Summarize your point of view succinctly early in the letter (the first sentence or paragraph if possible) and reiterate it in the closing.
Keep it timely: Write your letter while the issue is current, not later when interest has lagged.
Keep it fresh: Don’t repeat what other letter writers have said on the issue; come up with a fresh perspective.
Opinion pieces
If you find it difficult to express your thoughts effectively in a short letter, you can consider a longer opinion piece. Both the Alameda Sun and Alameda Journal will print longer columns if they are well-written. Submissions to the Alameda Sun can be sent to editor@alamedasun.com. Submissions to the Alameda Journal should be labeled “My Word” and sent to ajletter@bayareanewsgroup.com. As with letters, include full name, address and phone number. Deadline is noon Monday, but earlier submission is better. Due to space limitations, not all columns can be published.
The same guidelines above for Letters to the Editor apply to longer opinion pieces, except that word count should be 400-500 words. In addition, consider these tips:
· Concentrate on one main idea or single theme.
· Express your thesis clearly early in the piece (the first paragraph, if possible) and reinforce it in the last paragraph.
· Organize support for your thesis around three to five key supporting ideas. Introduce them with short bold face sentences if possible.
· Back up any claims with facts; be sure the facts are correct.
· Write in the third person unless your thesis is supported by personal experience.
· Use active verbs rather than passive ones.
· Include a brief biography of yourself at the end of the column, indicating the basis for your expertise.
