Writing Letters to the Editor

"We clip them and circulate them through the office like gossip sheets of what's going on. The press represents an overall buzz in the community."
— Congressional Aide

When writing a letter to the editor, remember your "C's"

Current - Responding to a recent article in the newspaper or to a very recent event is a great way to increase your odds of being published. Refer specifically to the article by using the name of the article and its date, such as, "In response to your recent article on AIDS in Africa [date] . . ."

You can do a search on the newspaper's website for recent articles, using search words like "AIDS," "Human Rights," "Africa," and "Health Systems."  You can find many newspaper websites and contact information at U.S. Newspaper Websites and Letters E-mail Addresses.

Clear and Concise - Keep your letter short and to the point. Stick to one subject and check your grammar. After you've written your letter, read it out loud and listen to it. Have you made your point clear? Can you shorten your letter and still get your point across?

Most papers will not print letters that are more than 250 words, or three to four paragraphs in length. The shorter the letter, the better chance it will be published.

Controversial - Letters to the Editor are appropriate forums to question or challenge what others have said or done, or to dispute policy decisions. However, be sure to avoid personal attacks. An argument based on merit rather than emotion is more credible and persuasive.

Contact information -  Include your address, e-mail, and daytime and evening phone numbers. You may be called by a staffer to verify you wrote the letter before it's published, so be sure to keep your cell phone handy. 

Contagious - Maximize your efforts by using U.S. Newspaper Websites and Letters E-mail Addresses to help you send your letter to newspapers all over the country. (Please abide by notes on that page calling for exclusive letters for papers such as the Washington Post and the New York Times.) If your letter is printed, be sure to send us a copy so we can track our effectiveness. And send a copy to your representative's and senators' offices too!

Tips for submission of letters to the editor

• Write the letter in your own words and style, but, it is very important to stick to the PHR-provided talking points. 
• If your chapter will be submitting several letters to the editor, make sure each one is unique. You may want to have each person choose one main topic to focus on and elaborate. 
• Include exactly one e-mail address in the To: field. Don't send to editors via Cc: or Bcc:.
• Sign the letter as a PHR member, ex. Pete Witzler, Medical Student Boston University Medical School, member Boston University Physicians for Human Rights Student Chapter
• Don't submit the same or similar letters to multiple papers in the same media market. (e.g., the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald.)
• If you can comment on a specific story in the paper, do so, mentioning the headline and date.
• Send your letter in the body of the e-mail message, not as an attachment.
• Don't send letters relating to local issues to other localities.
• After sending in your letter, call the editor to make sure they received it, and ask if they will print it.  If not, find out why; make any changes needed and re-submit it. Bear in mind that large newspapers and magazines receive hundreds of letters on any given subject. Many letters do not run, however relevant or well-written. Don't be discouraged; try again another time!
• After you send a letter, check that paper's or magazine's website to see if it ran.
• If your letter is printed, get the print version and the front page or editorial page banner of the paper's name. Send one copy to your legislators (both Senators and the local Representative), send one copy to Pete Witzler at the PHR office in Cambridge, and keep a few copies for your chapter's records.

Sample Letter to the Editor Outline:

1. State the problem/topic (why you personally are concerned). "Landfills are filling up and hazards are leaching into the groundwater."
2. Embellish the problem to make it more real for the reader. "Our garbage crisis is making Ohio a less livable place."
3. State the solution, both generally and specifically. "Packaging should no longer burden our landfills." "Congress should pass the Recycling Initiative so that packaging will become more recyclable and reusable. This will bring industry into the recycling efforts that government and the public are already part of."
4. Summary: A single, well written sentence wins your audience.

>  Return to the Student Chapter Toolbox