A WORD ABOUT READING OEN
OpEdNews.com is one of the 100 most visited blog sites on the web. It is completely open to English language writers in the US and around the world. The volunteer editors examine submissions and sometimes do minor copy editing, but do little screening except to discourage slander and bad taste. They do, however, reward what they regard as the best of the recent submissions with headline status that gives the lede for the story prominent placement on the home page, equivalent to page one of a newspaper.
The proprietary software that runs the site has been developed over the years to help readers find the content they wish to read. One can search by topic, author, and a number of other criteria. For example if you like to scan the comments that a particular member has posted about articles he or she has read, you can go to that author’s page and select his or her comments by clicking a “radio” button on the screen.
Remember that it is an open forum; it’s like having a conversation with a stranger in a diner. You need to discern credibility, motive, and recognize that you may be reading propaganda. The writing is often brash and colorful, and the viewpoints can be extreme. There is no fact checking save for the peer review by other readers who add their personal comments to the articles. There is also no firewall between opinion and reporting, and many writers pitch their own views and ignore or deny some of the available facts. (I suppose that’s not so greatly different than much of the mainstream media today.)
I have been published many times and served a tour as one of the Senior Editors. A current Senior Editor, Walter Brasch, just won two Journalism awards from the Pennsylvania Press Club – not his first by a long shot. You’ll also find nationally recognized writers like Paul Krugman and Robert Reich who cross-post their commentary to OEN. You’ll find stimulating commentary that’s both serious and fun. Here is the link to my Author’s page:
Go To Richmond Shreve’s Page on OEN (click)
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