We’re making a big change to our Sound Off page.
Sound Off — where readers or pretty much anyone has been able to express anonymous opinions — has occasionally been controversial. Some haven’t liked the lack of accountability. Others have insisted it gave people an opportunity to speak truth to power without fear of retribution.
Mostly, we’ve found it to be an outlet for the same few people. Some of the commentary has been insightful. Much of it has not.
We have always moderated Sound Off submissions more strictly than traditional letters to the editor. Those who like to insult others from the comfort of their own anonymity have been discouraged — and told us so — when their insults didn’t make it to print. We never rejected a submission because of an opinion, alone, but there were many instances where a Sound Off submission did not stand up to fact checking and, lacking the name and contact information of the writer, we were unable to talk to them about it. That’s something we routinely do when something stated in a letter to the editor does not check out.
So, after a lot of in-house discussion, we have decided we will no longer run anonymous submissions.
We will still have the Sound Off page on Tuesdays and Fridays. We urge readers to submit “quick hit” opinions that don’t require them to make a case like a full-length letter to the editor.
But the name of the writer will appear with the item, and we will require those submitting them to provide a telephone number (not for publication) for verification, just like we do for letters to the editor.
The discussion surrounding Sound Off has been going on for years. It probably predates my time at The Daily Star. I remember one former colleague making the observation that my opinions, expressed in columns like this one, are accompanied not only by my name, but by my photo.
It was a pretty good point.
The authors of our editorials are not named individually, but editorials are approved by a vote of the editorial board. The names of the members of that board are published at the bottom of every editorial page.
Another change on Sound Off is really a return to a prior practice. We will scan replies to posts on our Facebook page and consider them for use in Sound Off as “digital voices.” That doesn’t mean that every social media troll can expect his or her cheap shots to appear in print, but the best replies may show up on the page — again, with the writer’s name attached.
We hope more people like the change than dislike it, but we’re under no illusion that it will be universally popular.
It really comes down to fairness, accountability and transparency. We’re glad to facilitate lively discussion of a wide variety of topics. But sniping from the shadows isn’t fair.
A reminder of the guidelines: Sound Off submissions are limited to 150 words. Letters to the editor are limited to 300 words. Because they both are subject to the same verification standards, we may use them on whichever page fits best. An exception to that rule are the digital voices. They will appear only on the Sound Off page.
So please, share your opinions, especially on local matters, but pretty much anything is fair game. All submissions are subject to editing, but we’ll never make an edit that changes the meaning of your words. Our letters policy appears on the editorial page every Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
We especially invite our Sound Off regulars to continue writing and get the credit they deserve for their work.
We think this change will elevate the level of discourse and provide a fairer forum for all. We look forward to hearing what you think about that.