Why not publish every single letter to the editor?

I don't know of anything, but I think it's a great idea. With all of these media outlets that are struggling to find a way into the "social media" space, this seems like an easy place to start. You don't need to strain reporters to generate more content - just a person or two to manage it all from your readers.

The NY Times letter section is not broken. I enjoy the filtered feedback from a tightly edited letters section. I read enough uniformed rants online already.

Publishing all Letters once or twice a year would provide the public with a check on the Letters' editor. The Wall Street Journal's Letters, where this check should be performed, probably doesn't get many good ones. Judging by what they publish.

Hashim,
I too enjoy the edited version of the letters. But adding an online component wouldn't change this.
When I read the Times and see quite a few anti-Bush letters, I wonder how many pro-Bush letters did not get published. I actually believe that the selection in the published letters section reflects the readers' sentiment. But if they published all the letters online, we could see for ourselves.

Newspapers should consider this idea as they search for online relevance in 2007. Most newspaper-produced blogs are weak, with a lack of standard features used on almost all other blogs (including this one!), spotty update schedules and thereby, lack of community-building. Newspapers are behind the 8-ball. They should consider simple ideas like this one to help generate some momentum and interest in their product.

You don't think they'll publish the full unedited text, uh?
So, editing a thousand disorganized, mumbling, I'm-pretty-sure-I'm-right letters could easily triple the effort needed to edit a thousand articles written by trained, savvy, do-it-well-or-you're-fired journalists.
Daily? hehe, next question, please.

Andres, There's no sense in editing these letters. Maybe send them through programs to quarantine nasty words and anger (potential slander) for human oversight.
Other than that, let 'em go. Maybe the readers could rank them so that the interesting one rise to the top.
Now that I'm thinking about it, another area of rich content is op-ed submissions. Lots of intelligent people write essays about their areas of expertise, but fail to make the cut.

yeah, i don't have enough time as it is. if only there was a way for some well educated people who can edit and write well to go through these things and publish the good ones. that would be a great idea. an idea i would pay for. we need less information, not more.

Wow! its a BIG and good idea considering in convergence of internet and print taking place now.As a publisher in Ghana where I am looking to grow our paper on both ends its a sure thing. Mr. Baker thanks. Its great. We recieve 150 letters a week and we publish only 13 or so.

NYT won't "share" all of its online letters because those letters may contradict the official Editorial page view. After all, aren't the LTE supposed to reflect the readers' opinion? I suspect the Editorial page on the whole is much more liberal than that of its readership. Today, the editors can say those 15 letters reflect those of its readership and we don't have the information to call them on it. Tomorrow, if fully published, a true score can be kept and expose the NYT for what it is- a propoganda machine for the far-left wing of the Democratic party and not the "objective" news source they'd like you to think they are.

Re: Baker on Publishing All Letters

A new platform is on the way that will revolutionize the way information is sold. Silicon Valley has apparently offered 100 Million to build the

www.IntellectualExchange.com

Thank God! I hated insurance.com!

Jack

Well, I contribute frequently to that 1000 at the New York Times, about once a week on average.

I rarely get published. But I put my letters (to NYT and Boston Globe) on my blog:

http://martingevans.blogspot.com/

So anyone who stumbles across the blog can read them.

Re: Fundamental Purpose of Markets, Baker Letter

We must not forget the fundamental purpose of markets is the exchange of ideas.

Competitive Intelligence drives markets, that's why an IntellectualExchange.com is both needed and necessary to develop a reward base financial system for those who actually deserve it.

Jack

Iacocca may know everything about leadership but I am sure he doesn't know everything about automobiles. In is book "The Chrysler Story" when describing problems at Chryler he states "among the worst examples were the Aspen and Volare". I bought a 1977 Volare and it still looked good and ran well when I gave it away in 2005 after I had put 374,178 miles on it.

There is a mistake in a URL in the Sept. 10 issue. I wanted to contact an editor, but strangely, in the contact page, there are only phone numbers!

I left a message this morning (9/5/07) in Jamie's mailbox in Chicago at
CHICAGO
One Prudential Plaza
Suite 2900
130 E. Randolph St.
Chicago, IL 60601-6213
312-233-7946.

He never answered!

Do you care about mistakes? Customer service?

There is a new free site publishaletter.com that pretty much does all that. You can send a letter to the editor of virtually any newspaper (English only) in the world. Since the odds are high that the letter will not be printed you can publish it on the site. They even have an op-ed section. Judging by the entries, you don't have to be a UN diplomat or a visiting head of a (small) state to have your opinion piece published.

I've searched to find a "Letters to the Editor" for BusinessWeek but can find none, and they don't print any such letters in their magazine. So, here's mine:

For the past couple of years, I've noticed with some interest that the "Jack & Suzy Welch" column in BusinessWeek (last printed page in each issue), contains a lot of Mr. Welch's comments but little of Ms. Welch's (but there she is, in the photo with Mr. Welch), even though the comments frequently imply that the column is truly their joint effort "(made us realize" or "we've come to understand").

Are we to believe that the business expertise of Mr. Welch and Ms. Welch are equal? If so, it might be worth reviewing her credentials for commanding such a reputation (and audience).

- Jan Bohren
Croton-on-Hudson, NY