The Signal Tribune believes in the power of the press, and we believe in sharing that power and our platform with the surrounding community who have opinions about things that may or may not be covered by local media. Through opinion editorials, community members can provide additional insight and perspectives that we alone cannot give our readers. We have certain guidelines for these entries.
Opinion editorials should be just that—an opinion. This does not include personal essays or creative writing, though an opinion editorial may incorporate both of these things in order to argue a larger point. Opinion editorials will be published on our website and newspaper and will be marked so it stands apart from a standard article written by Signal Tribune staff.
The Signal Tribune has full autonomy in choosing whether or not to publish an opinion editorial. We will prioritize publishing entries that:
-Help the community understand a local issue more deeply
-Help readers understand what an issue means to them
-Expose readers to topics or local issues they may not be aware of
-Help readers understand a different perspective on a local issue
Note: You do not need to live in Signal Hill, Long Beach, etc. to submit an opinion editorial to the Signal Tribune.
Format:
- Opinion editorials should be no longer than 1,000 words maximum.
- Entries should be in Arial font, 11 point and include the full name, email and phone number of the author. Names will be published; email and phone numbers are so editors can contact the author for edits and will not be shared.
- Entries should be fully fleshed, completed pieces. Please do not send in a pitch or idea for an opinion editorial and expect a response.
- Please attach a list of links if you are citing specific information. This is to speed up the fact checking process and provide a sense of trust with our readers.
Guidelines
Since the Signal Tribune is a hyper-local newspaper, opinion editorial entries should focus on issues central to Signal Hill, Long Beach or neighboring cities such as Bellflower, Carson, Lakewood, etc. National issues can be localized to the area as well, if direct ties are made in the piece.
If you would like your op-ed published, but your identity kept out, you must provide a reason for this request. We believe in full transparency, and will only grant anonymity for valid reasons such as fear of retaliation from a workplace or school or other extreme circumstances that threaten a person’s safety or wellbeing.
The Signal Tribune will not accept opinion editorials that have already been published in another newspaper.
We have no problem publishing opinions we disagree with, but the Signal Tribune will not provide a platform for hateful or discriminatory language, ideas, or ideology and will not respond to these types of entries.
Editing Process
When an opinion editorial is received, the Signal Tribune staff will look it over for grammar, clarity, length, argument and writing quality. Comments and edits will be added to the Google Document, and the author will be notified when the document is ready for a round of editing. Our goal is to make sure the author is comfortable with edits and feel as though their voice and argument is their own.
This process may include some back-and-forth on specific changes in order to come to an agreeable place, but ultimately these decisions are made by staff.
Signal Tribune staff will look into claims made by an author for fact checking purposes, as we are conscious of not publishing false information. Please be prepared to back up any facts in your piece.
How To Send
Please send entries via email to Newspaper@SignalTribune.com with the subject line “Opinion Editorial.” We will do our best to get back to you within a week, but our staff is small and often quite busy. If you do not receive a response within a week, please send a follow-up email or call our office at (562) 595-7900.
You can also send us an opinion editorial using this form, we’d love to hear from you.