There’s room for big issues in local letters policy

The Spokesman-Review

The letters to the editor are an important community sounding board. When we introduced our new letters policy in January, we spoke about how we wanted the letters to be focused on our community – Spokane and the greater Northwest – and written by our community.

As many letter writers have pointed out, national politics make a local impact. We agree. It’s that local impact we want to hear about.

We want letters about how the actions Congress, the president or the Supreme Court are reverberating in Spokane or the Northwest. We want to know what our readers think about what our Washington and Idaho representatives and senators are doing.

The same is true for federal elections. We want to know how you think the candidates’ policies will impact the Northwest.

As the saying goes, all politics are local. Show us how true that is with examples of the federal government’s influence on our lives here in the other Washington and the rest of the Northwest.

And, here’s a reminder about our letters policy:

• Include your real first and last name, your address and a phone number where we can reach you during the day. Only your name and city of residence will be used for publication – we use your street address and phone number as part of our verification process. Submissions will only be accepted from Pacific Northwest residents or subscribers.

• Keep it to 250 words. Letters longer than that will be rejected.

• Letters should be original. Many candidates and organizations send out form letters than can be used by supporters. While you may agree with the content, using canned talking points doesn’t elevate our community discussion about the issues.

• Keep your facts straight. Any facts used in a letter should be verifiable – and feel free to include links when you submit your letter.

• Direct your grievances about area business to the proper channels. Letters regarding businesses will only run if they pertain to recent reporting or are a benefit to the community.

• Hate speech, racism and threats of violence will not be tolerated.

Submit letters by email to editor@spokesman.com.