Got an opinion? Write us a letter!

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Allyson Beauregard
Rédacteur / Managing Editor


Allyson Beauregard
Rédacteur / Managing Editor

Letters to the editor are among the most widely read features in any newspaper and at the Journal, we are happy to receive an abundance of them every issue to print on page 5. In fact, there have been instances when they were so abundant that they were carried over to another page or the next issue due to space constraints. This is the level of participation we like to see!
Letters are very important and we welcome and appreciate them all. Whether they express anger or disagreement about something published in the paper, congratulate us on a job well done, or speak about a particular issue, responses from the public inform us that people are paying attention to, reading, and reflecting on the material published or other matters of interest. 
And while the letters often touch on hot topics and debates that appear in the regular pages of the paper, they are very different from journalistic articles: it is imperative that the two not be confused.
Journalistic articles attempt to paint a complete and unbiased picture of the
issue at hand by providing information, statements and views from more than one side of the issue. This can be difficult at times if some parties refuse to comment or do not respond to inquiries, but the focus is on presenting the facts, void of emotions that play into personal opinions.
Letters, on the other hand, express the opinions, views or judgments of one or more people, so they do not necessarily portray all sides of a story.  Letters do not express the view of the newspaper, and the Journal isn’t obligated to present
them. When they are published outside of the normally designated pages, they
are labelled accordingly so readers are aware that they are not journalistic
articles.  Regardless of how detailed a letter writer’s opinions may be, they
cannot replace facts, and we do our best to remove all statements that can be
confirmed as false. The Journal is in the process of refining its letter editing
policy to prevent relaying incorrect information.
Opinions are diverse and having the ability to freely possess and express them means it’s only right to allow everyone to do the same.Tolerance – a willingness to allow, without endorsing, the values, ideas or opinions of others even if you may not agree – is the key to democratic, successful and peaceful societies. If you don’t agree, send in your own letter!   
Letters offer readers the opportunity to speak to more than just family and friends, and are a way to reach a larger audience, politicians and other social leaders.
With 9,400 copies of the Journal distributed bi-weekly, they are bound to get the public’s attention.
Keep them coming, dear readers!