Bringing balance to opinions

“I would like to thank the AJC for including a conservative political cartoon directly below Mike Luckovich’s daily drawing, which is almost always liberal,” wrote one reader. He often disagrees with Luckovich and finds the page more agreeable when the cartoon is balanced with a take on the news that reflects his own. Of course, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Luckovich has many fans in metro Atlanta and elsewhere.

Editorial page editor Andre Jackson says readers have consistently told us how important it is to offer varied viewpoints on the opinion pages. “We see our job as presenting readers with a wide discussion forum on major issues affecting this region, state, nation and world.”

Historically, newspapers identified strongly with a point of view on their opinion pages, and towns that had two papers often had one from each side. That’s how it was in Atlanta. The Constitution, the morning paper, had a left-leaning opinion page, and The Journal, published in the afternoon, offered views from the right. When we combined the two newspapers, we included voices from both, with The Constitution’s historical point of view tending to dominate.

In recent years, with the growth of the Internet, talk radio, and even more choices for opinion journalism, readers have become less comfortable with the idea that a newspaper serving the entire community would line up on one side or the other of the partisan divide.

We do a lot of reader research, and we like to think we’ve learned more about reader preferences than most newspapers. For example, we know our readers are typically serious about keeping up with the world around them, and they demand a sophisticated newspaper that offers a comprehensive report of local, national and international events — as well as a lot of watchdog and accountability journalism.

On the opinion pages, readers are clear. They have their opinions, but want to read about more than their own views. Whether they fall to the right or the left on the political spectrum, most want an editorial page that shows both sides of issues. They’ve let us know they appreciate our changes, including eliminating partisan endorsements in elections and replacing daily institutional editorials with thoughtful content that contains other points of view.

Certainly, there are some who want the paper to reflect only their own views. And some don’t believe the newspaper can take a strong leadership role in the community — as the newspaper has on important issues like civil rights and government corruption —without a partisan editorial approach.

Editor Kevin Riley believes that this more thoughtful approach makes us better able to take strong positions when necessary. For example, we called for the resignation of Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall on our Editorial page. Riley said readers can count on the newspaper to speak up clearly and forcefully on important issues in Metro Atlanta.

Jackson says leadership also comes on the Atlanta Forward pages, which tackle the issues of concern to our area with a collaborative, problem-solving approach.

“Atlantans may differ greatly in our politics from one household to the next, but I believe there are common challenges we can agree to jointly overcome,” Jackson said. The Atlanta Forward pages run five days a week, opposite the Balanced Views page. On Sunday, we include an editorial and deep coverage of an important local issue.

On weekdays, smart, dedicated moderators host discussions on topics such as transportation, the economy and regional leadership. They bring a diversity of voices into the conversation, and sometimes interject their own.

So it’s a different kind of leadership we are now offering on the opinion pages. To me, it seems a more modern and inclusive approach. We’re pleased to know that readers are embracing it.