During the past few months, the Herald has received more than its typical share of letters demanding that either a) we pull one of our columnists or b) we reconsider our policies on cartoons. Not that we don’t appreciate the input that we receive from every segment of our readership, but we will be doing neither.
First and foremost,we’re not even going to pretend that this paper agrees with everything that goes on the editorial page. That would be impossible. Adele, Val, Frank and Sandra take their own views on the topics of the day and as their opinions often contradict one another, the Herald would then be contradicting itself by claiming to concur with all that is being written or, in some cases, drawn for this page.
So why do we run them on a regular basis? We feel their views are important enough to voice weekly. They consistently represent one end of the spectrum or the other that many are afraid to touch. Their words and art make statements that either cause us to nod in agreement or shake our heads in disbelief. If the Herald settled on middle-of-the-road positions, discussion and debate would not ensue as it should.
Such processes are natural and healthy.
They are also a necessary part in ensuring that our readers have the ability to express their opinions. If we start censoring our columnists and cartoonists, should we censor our readers next?
While the Herald has the right to edit both, more often than not (except in very extreme cases) it selects to simply correct misspellings and poor punctuation and let you say your piece. It is your right to write.
That, we feel, is what a free press is all about: providing a public forum in which readers can air their concerns, thoughts, feelings and everything in between with their entire community. That is the essence of the editorial page.
This forum, while public, is also intensely local. You’ll be hard pressed to find letters on this page from outside Kitsap County and more often than not, letters are from readers who reside right here in the North End. They are our co-workers, friends, family and neighbors. People whose views we care about, whose actions continue to shape the face of our community.
Whether or not we agree with everything our readership (or our columnists and cartoonists) have to say isn’t the issue. The issue here is one of basic freedoms in the United States.
To put it in a nutshell, just because you may not agree with someone’s views on a topic doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have the ability and forum to express them with others. Like you, the Herald makes choices every day, should we no longer be afforded the ability to choose?
