Process
- Identify which paper you’d like to submit your letter to (see below for a partial list); only submit to one at a time
- Google the paper’s letter-to-the-editor policies to confirm the length requirements and submission process
- Write up your response to a current event.
- Sign your name, and provide your location and contact information. Sometimes they call to clarify/confirm.
- Send it off!
Best practices
- Reference a recent article
- Stay within word count; brief is better anyway!
- Specify a desired outcome
- Incorporate why you care (your story)
Why LTEs are important
- They highlight that people are paying attention to the importance of taking climate action and specific policy issues, as well as calling out the bad actors
- Elected officials receive and pay attention to LTEs
- Newspapers pay attention to the topic areas covered by LTEs, and it can shape their priorities; the more people care about climate issues, the more coverage they will provide
Links for LTE submissions:
Most local papers have a form on their website. For those that accept LTEs via email, you do have to include your name, daytime phone number, and address in the email. It’s also a good idea to include a brief bio after your sign off, which won’t be published but provides context.
- Washington Post
- New York Times: email to letters@nytimes.com, 150 – 175 words, reference article from past 7 days
- SF Chronicle
- Mercury News
- East Bay Times
- Napa Valley Register
- Santa Rosa Press Democrat: email letters@pressdemocrat.com
- Marin Independent Journal: email opinion@marinij.com, 300 word max with a “preference for shorter letters”
- Palo Alto Weekly: email letters@paweekly.com, 300 word max
- San Mateo Daily Journal