A Letter to the Editor

Letter to the Editor

As this is a relatively simple assignment, we will be working on the letter to the editor for one unit only.  The paper will be due at the end of Unit 4.

Purpose:

How many times have we heard someone complaining about something happening in our communities–but offering no solutions for the problem?  This assignment is designed to develop your problem-solving skills and engage you in a substantive conversation concerning a current local issue.  This assignment will also encourage you to begin seriously considering your audience as a writer.  When you are writing a letter such as this, you’ll want to consider who will be reading it, particularly in terms of what words, examples, facts, or appeals might best convince this particular group.

The Assignment:

Write a two to three page double-spaced (minimum of 500-750 words) letter to the editor, proposing a solution to a current local problem.  List the newspaper to which you would be sending this to at the top of your paper.  Begin the letter with:  “Dear Editor,”  Throughout the paper, be as specific as you possibly can in terms of:

1.) Defining/describing the problem and who it affects

2.) Describing your solution

3.) Defending your solution as the best means of dealing with this problem

As you’re writing this letter, also do keep in mind your audience.  As a reminder, your audience is not the actual editor of the newspaper. Instead, it is the local community that constitutes the readership of that newspaper.

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IMPORTANT NOTE: Papers on the following topics will not be accepted:

* abortion
* capital punishment
* euthanasia

I’ve already read more papers on these topics than anyone should in an entire lifetime, so I won’t read anymore. I encourage you to be more creative in selecting your topic.  For the Letter to the Editor, you should also be choosing a topic that is far more specific and local than any of these broad controversial issues.