Write a Letter to the Editor
To the Editor, re "A Sharp Turn for the Supreme Court on Abortion" (letters, April 20): I am a rheumatologist caring for a patient whose lupus nephritis is flaring. Her creatinine is rising as her platelet count falls, and she has failed to improve with pulse methylprednisolone and intravenous cyclophosphamide. I am contemplating using rituximab. I would like to refer this case to the United States Supreme Court for its guidance.
Richard Zweig, M.D.
Santa Rosa, Calif., April 20, 2007
(Letter to the editor printed in the New York Times after the Supreme Court's April 18, 2007 ruling on the Federal Abortion Ban) Studies show that Letters to the Editor sections are among the most-read parts of a newspaper. You can be sure that elected officials – or their staff members – read those sections regularly. Letters to the editor are free and relatively easy to submit. As a result, such letters can be effective ways of influencing public opinion (and the votes of policymakers who pay close attention to public opinion).
Don’t be discouraged if your letter isn’t published. Numerous letters on a particular topic can alert editors to the importance of a particular story and improve the chances that at least one of the letters on that particular topic will be published.
For a more in-depth discussion of what makes a successful letter to the editor, check out the following article put out by Texas Impact: How to Write a Great Letter to the Editor by Bee Moorhead.
Writing Your Letter
Submitting Your Letter
After Publication
Sample Letters
Letter to the Editor contacts for Texas Newspapers
Writing Your Letter
- Follow the newspaper’s guidelines for length. Ideally, keep your letter shorter than 150 words. Some newspapers will allow up to 300, but check before you submit a piece longer than 150 words.
- Focus on one point and state it clearly at the beginning of your letter. Include a title that lets people know what your letter is about.
- Expect the editor to do some editing to your letter before they print it as space, brevity, and clarity are usually important issues for each paper.
- Keep it simple. Avoid using complicated sentences and big words.
- Make sure your letter is timely. Try to tie your point to a recent news item, editorial, letter or event.
- If you are responding to someone’s comments, don’t waste your limited space by repeating them. Focus on your own point.
- Avoid personal attacks, offensive language and political name-calling (e.g., "far right," "extremist"). Such language will turn off the average reader. Keep in mind that some newspapers will not print any material about a certain candidate or politician, but will print letters about the issues that they may be talking about.
- Some papers limit the number of letters an individual can submit to one a month; check with your local paper before submitting more often.
Submitting Your Letter
- Newspapers typically list on their editorial pages or Websites the postal and email addresses for submitting letters to the editor. You can find several Texas newspapers listed here and their editorial email addresses or web page submission sites. Use the online sites whenever possible and follow their directions for submission.
- Submit your letter by email (preferred) or by fax. If neither is possible, send by mail as soon as possible to lessen the time between possible publication and the event about which you are writing.
- Include your contact information (daytime and evening phone numbers, address and email, if available) so that the newspaper can verify that you sent the letter. When sending a letter to a university/college newspaper, you should include your major of study and your current year in school. Always include a signature when sending a letter through surface mail or faxing.
After Publication
- Clip your letter and the header of the page on which it is printed – including at least the name of the newspaper and the date. Then photocopy the letter and header together on one page and fax your copies to your elected officials. Include a personal note indicating that you are a constituent in their district.
- Let the staff of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas know that your letter has been published. You can email us or phone our office at (512) 462-1661.
Sample Letters
These are only examples. We encourage you to modify the wording, reflect your own experiences, and highlight the points you feel most strongly about before submitting a letter to your local newspaper. A unique letter that reflects your own personal voice is far more powerful than a generic form letter that you simply sign your name to.
Sample letters regarding Crisis Pregnancy Centers:
Dear Editor,
I am disappointed to discover that our state legislature shifted $5 million of our tax dollars to fund Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) throughout the state. According to a new report by NARAL Pro Choice Texas, this money was once used to fund preventive health screening and contraceptive services. Now it funds CPCs, fake "clinics" known to provide inaccurate and biased information to women looking for medical advice on all their reproductive health care options. CPCs don’t counsel women on contraception, they don’t have trained medical personnel on staff and they often lie to women. If the Texas legislature wants to help women, they should have kept the $5 million where it was. I want my tax dollars to go to prevention, not to waste. What about you?
Dear Editor,
Anyone looking for health-care information or services deserves full, unbiased, and relevant facts. A woman facing an unintended pregnancy is no different. So I was surprised to learn in a new report issued by NARAL Pro Choice Texas that our state legislature recently stripped $5 million from health-care programs that provide cancer screening and family planning in order to fund "crisis pregnancy centers" (CPC's) or unregulated fake 'clinics' with a clear political agenda. This report serves to reconfirm just how out of touch anti-choice politicians are with everyday women and families in Texas.
Sample letters regarding Texas Prevention First Act of 2007:
Dear Editor,
In Texas, the legislature has an opportunity to help resolve one of the most divisive issues of our time: abortion.
Sadly, our elected officials have focused on measures that make abortion more difficult and dangerous, while ignoring commonsense proposals that would empower women to improve their health and prevent unintended pregnancies.
As a member of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, I am joining the group's challenge to support a common ground agenda. That means advocating better access to birth control and family planning services and teaching our kids honest, age-appropriate sex education.
By focusing on these prevention efforts, we could unify the public and vastly reduce the number of unintended pregnancies.
Dear Editor, In 2005, 15 states, including Texas, considered legislation that would allow pharmacists or pharmacies to refuse to fill women's prescriptions for birth control. Worse yet, there is a growing network of rogue pharmacists who oppose birth control - and are imposing their beliefs on customers. For many women, birth control is an essential part of their health care. In fact, we should focus on increasing access to contraception as a commonsense way to prevent unintended pregnancy and reduce the need for abortion. As a member of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, I am joining the group's call for our legislators to support the Texas Prevention First Act of 2007. |
