Hello! And also, Why Newspaper Editorials Suck

Greetings! Don't be afraid of an unfamiliar face here. First, I'd like to thank Ron for the opportunity to post as a guest blogger on Middle Earth Journal. Ron is a writer that I respect and admire, and I've quoted him often over at my blog, Running Scared. (Insert cheap link whoring joke of choice here.) It was a risky move, because I'm a bit of a wild card and you never know what I'm likely to say, so I appreciate Ron's trust in allowing me to occasionally post my unorthodox ramblings in the hallowed halls of MEJ.

Comments are something that everyone is entitled to. It's part and parcel of the freedom of speech which is the only thing that will ever keep this country heading on the right track. Obviously, some forums (make that "fora" for you literary purists) gain more traction than others. Newspapers still have significant power to persuade, and their editorial endorsements can carry considerable weight. Why?

That's the question that is asked today by Joe Territo. I want to share that blog entry with you for a couple of reasons. Joe is a favorite read of mine. He's a respected journalist with a fairly recent blog, and while his topics are sometimes rather "Jersey-centric", he is handy with a good turn of phrase and hits the mark most times. He's also a colleague of Jeff Jarvis at Buzz Machine and they make a good pair of reading sources for the discriminating blogophile.

He poses the following question:

"Newspaper editorials are written by a small group of people. The editorials usually do not include the names of the authors. The editorial writers generally are not involved in the newspaper's newsgathering and reporting operation. So what do these opinions represent?"

Indeed. Who's opinion are we reading and what weight should we give it, whether they support our favored candidate or the opponent? As the hackneyed saying goes, "I report. You decide."

Be well, MEJ readers, and I hope to see more of you. In the meantime... read the papers, but make your own damned opinion.