14A

dallasnews.com

Monday, January 5, 2015

The Dallas Morning News

Behind the opinions

A users guide to the commentary pages of The Dallas Morning News

Editorial
Page

ditorials represent the institutional opinion of the newspaper. That opinion is shaped
by the editorial board on behalf of
the newspapers owners. The editorial board is advisory to Vice President
and Editorial Page Editor Keven
Ann Willey, who is advisory to the
newspapers editor and publisher.
The editorial board has developed
this statement of philosophy to guide
its thinking:
As the soul of the newspaper and the
conscience of the community, the editorial
pages provoke, inspire and challenge readers.
We believe in a progressive conservatism that
advocates civil rights, fiscal responsibility,
environmental stewardship, effective local
governments, public accountability and an
internationalist foreign policy.

How editorial opinions are developed: Editorial board members offer

topic ideas during regular staff meetings. The topic, message and tone of
the proposed editorial are often hotly debated. The editor listens carefully to the debate, selects a course of
action and asks for a volunteer writer. Often the editorial writer whose
arguments have carried the day volunteers. Editorials are unsigned because they represent the institutions
view, rather than the view of the individual writer.
The best editorials are memorable. They are persuasive, compelling,
relevant to readers, passionate, constructive, timely and provocative.
They are well-researched and smartly written. They are, by definition,
opinionated.
Sometimes, the most powerful
editorial is a photo with a single sentence. Other times, its a 1,000-word
treatise. The power is in the topic
selection, the logic employed and the
rhythm of the writing. In shaping the
content of daily and weekly commentary pages, the editors keep the
departments five aspirations top of
mind: Provide strong community
leadership, provide a forum for informed debate, get new voices/viewpoints on the pages, actively engage
readers and increase readership of
these pages and the newspaper as a
whole.

MASTHEAD

CARTOON

This tells you the

papers top news
executives and past
publishers.

We subscribe
to cartoonists
nationwide and
cull through
drawings daily
to pick the best.
Political cartoons
on the Editorial
page are generally
consistent with
the newspapers
views on issues.
Cartoons on the
op-ed page
reflect a variety
of perspectives.

EDITORIALS
Here we
offer the
newspapers
institutional
opinion.

LETTERS
Want to get something off your chest? Letters
are your chance, impeded only by our 200word limit and our editing for clarity, style and
accuracy. The News receives about 450 each
week; about 10 percent will see print in our
representative sampling.
There is no shortage of online forums where
people can anonymously call others names,
make up facts and throw bombs. But in our
published letters to the editor, people sign
their names and publicly stand behind their
opinions. That makes them stand out among
the chatter. Contributors are right to feel
honored to see their submissions chosen from
a crowded field and their arguments presented in the liveliest forum for informed
debate in Texas.

HITS AND MISSES

This quick, witty
Saturday staple
offers a venue for
comment-in-short
on a wide variety
of developments.

We love focused letters that make a point with

humor, irony or precision. It surprises some
people to learn that we place a priority on
letters that disagree with our editorial positions. (For tips, see dallasnews.com/letters.)
To write a letter to the editor, use our online
form at dallasnews.com/sendletters. It offers a
quick way for readers to send and for us to
consider letters. It will work on your iPad or
mobile phone, too, so you can send us letters
on the go while your thoughts are still fresh.
The only other way to send a letter to the
editor is via the U.S. Postal Service: Letters
From Readers, TDMN, P.O. Box 655237, Dallas,
Texas 75265. But trust us, the online form is
quicker and it doesnt charge anything for
confirmation or a return receipt!

KEVEN ANN WILLEY

NICOLE STOCKDALE

Vice president and editorial page editor, 56

Deputy editorial page editor, 37

At The Dallas Morning News since late 2002, Keven developed her interest in politics
early. When her family lived in Washington, D.C., her mother used to take Keven as a
baby in her bassinet to the U.S. Senate gallery to watch the likes of Everett Dirksen and
Estes Kefauver debate the issues of the day. Three decades later, Keven was a political
columnist for The Arizona Republic in a state that for most of the 80s and 90s was best
known for impeaching, indicting or otherwise politically impaling its governors. Editorial pages under her direction won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing and were finalists for the
same prize three other times since 2001. Keven studied briefly in Europe and Mexico before graduating
magna cum laude from Northern Arizona University and starting (but never finishing) a masters program in Spanish literature. She is a member of the Pulitzer Prize board, enjoys hiking and biking, and
lives with her chef husband in downtown Dallas.

As deputy editorial page editor, Nicole is the Editorial Department's operational chief, managing most of the editorial writers and running the day-today production. She is also in charge of the department's digital strategy. She
joined the editorial board in 2006 after seven years as a copy editor at The
Dallas Morning News and The Wichita Eagle. Nicole was born in Nebraska but
did most of her growing up in Kansas. She graduated cum laude from Wichita
State University, with a degree in communication and political science. These
days, she calls north Oak Cliff home, where she lives with her sportswriter husband, Corbett
Smith. They love taking long camping trips at national parks but spend most of their waking
hours chasing around their three spirited young children and forgetting to watch movies
they've Netflixed.

Email kwilley@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @KA_Willey

Email nstockdale@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @nstockdale

Online
Social media

Opinion Blog

On Twitter, you can follow all the members of

the editorial board and get updates on the
latest opinion content by following
@DMNOpinion. On Facebook, you can share
your opinions on the latest headlines by liking
the official Dallas Morning News Facebook
page: facebook.com/dallasmorningnews. Look
for us on Google+, too.

Editorial board members get

warmed up by airing their theories,
arguments and peeves on the Opinion Blog. They often butt heads on
subjects that later end up as published editorials. Readers can watch
the debate unfold and even join the
conversation at dallasnews.com/
opinionblog.

A14 01-05-2015 Set: 20:17:24

Sent by: ajharrisjr@dallasnews.com News

BLACK
YELLOW
MAGENTA
CYAN

The Dallas Morning News

dallasnews.com

Monday, January 5, 2015

MIKE DRAGO
Assistant editorial page editor, 48

Editorial board and staff

Mike oversees content selection and editing of the daily Viewpoints page and the Sunday Points section. He rejoined the
newspaper in September after working two years as vice president of content at Idea Grove, a Dallas marketing and PR firm.
Before that, he was a career-long newshound. He worked for nine years at The Associated Press before moving to The News in
1999. He spent the next 13 years working in the main news department as education editor, criminal justice editor, state editor,
city editor and assistant managing editor. Mike was born in Detroit but considers himself a naturalized Texan. He is a graduate of
Grapevine High School and the University of North Texas, with a bachelor's degree in journalism. When hes not on the job, Mike
stays busy with his family: his wife, Amy, two teenage daughters and a 5-year-old son who loves Star Wars and soccer.
Twitter: @mikedrago
Email mdrago@dallasnews.com

Viewpoints
The Viewpoints page, published
Monday-Saturday, appears opposite the
Editorial Page. In shorthand, its the
op-ed page. We review 100-200 manuscripts daily from which we select the
three or four best. What qualifies as
best? Sprightly written fresh arguments
with strong points of view on timely
topics. And we place a premium on
local subjects.
We carefully keep track of the ideological bent of the columns we publish
to assure that we run a balance of opinion. Viewpoints and Points have published about 1,400 columns this year,
with the total liberal voices and total
conservative voices separated by less
than 1percent. In addition, we make
sure controversial topics whether its
local fracking or national health care
get columns from both sides.
The Viewpoints page includes:
Syndicated and other national
columnists: These columnists, who
write regularly, boast an expertise and
reader following that give them exposure in multiple newspapers. We have
access to more than 30 of these writers.
Charles Krauthammer, George Will
and Kathleen Parker are three of our
conservative voices. Ruth Marcus,
Leonard Pitts and Esther Cepeda are
among the liberal columnists .
Local columnists: Several local
writers work has earned them a recurring spot on Viewpoints, including
Gordon Keith and Mark Davis. Most of
our local columns are by one-time
writers with expertise on a timely topic.
Voices columnists: The Saturday
Viewpoints page is produced by digital
communities manager Michael Landauer and features some of our Voices
volunteer columnists from North Texas.
See dallasnews.com/voices for more
information.
To submit a column: Columns
should be no more than 650 words.
Submit to viewpoints@dallasnews.com.

Points
Points is the Sunday opinion and
commentary section of The Dallas
Morning News. Its the place to find
sharply written, in-depth analysis of
current events and trends, as well as
eclectic and unconventional takes on
issues from the world of politics, ethics
and morality, pop culture, foreign
affairs, technology, the arts and, most
of all, dispatches from the front lines of
the culture war. Points aims to be a fun,
stylish read for intellectually engaged
people.
The Points section includes:
Essays and columns: Who writes
for Points? No weekly lineup is the
same. You might find a nationally
syndicated columnist, a Dallas Morning News writer and other thoughtprovoking experts from our backyard
or across the globe. Some will debate
from the right, some from the left, but
most come from a place that defies
such rigid categorization. The common
thread that ties them all together is a
counterintuitive approach that lives up
to Points Think Sharp motto.
Special Points features: Each week,
the section cover includes Talking
Points, a round-up of notable quotes
from the weeks news, from the piquant
to the poignant. Youll also find our
weekly Q&A, Point Person, in which
members of the editorial staff interview
a provocative newsmaker or an insightful expert, with a focus on ideas
that enlighten and challenge.
Editorials and cartoons: On 2P,
youll find our Sunday Editorial Page,
and on 3P, we treat readers to an expanded selection of letters to the editor
and additional cartoons.
To submit a column: Most columns
run at 750 words. Submit to
points@dallasnews.com.

15A

RUDY BUSH
Editorial writer, 39
Rudy spent his first six years at The
Dallas Morning News learning the ins
and outs, and ups and downs, of
Dallas City Hall. The experience
taught him how city government
really works and why the decisions
made downtown are so important to residents and the
region. Prior to joining The News, Rudy wrote for The
Chicago Tribune about everything from the mob to the
indictments of consecutive governors. His experience
covering politics seedier side was a reality check that
he carries with him in his work as a journalist. A graduate of the University of Dallas, Rudy tries to keep up
with his four children, when he isnt writing, reporting
or teaching.
Email rbush@dallasnews.com
Twitter:@rudybush

MIKE HASHIMOTO
Editorial writer, 56
Everything and nothing about Mikes
first two decades at The News prepared him for life on the opinion pages. In 20 years with SportsDay and on
the city desk and long before that, he
had grown used to being a lonely
right-wing nut with staunch Democratic parents and
sisters and a typical college experience at UT-Arlington
so the editorial board occasionally offers him a little
company. Today, he writes editorials, offers personal
thoughts at our Opinion Blog and writes the occasional
op-ed. A graduate of Dallas Kimball High, he and his
lovely wife, Metro columnist Jacquielynn Floyd, live in
Flower Mound surrounded by spoiled cats.
Email mhashimoto@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @MikeHashimoto

SHARON GRIGSBY
Editorial writer and project editor, 58
Sharon leads our Bridging Dallas
North-South Gap project, begun in
2007 to advocate for the southern
half of the city. Her Dallas roots run
back to 1980, when she joined the
DMN newsroom after stints in New
York and Detroit. Shes a Baylor grad, where she drove
the administration crazy with her student newspaper
commentary. After several decades as a DMN editor in
departments including metro, politics and features,
Sharons excited to be writing again, especially looking
for ways to make Dallas a smarter city. When shes not
at work, Sharons likely running at White Rock Lake,
antiquing for her old East Dallas home or patiently (not
so much) trying to kick into a yoga handstand.
Email sgrigsby@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @SharonFGrigsby

RODGER JONES
Editorial writer, 64
Commuters, Rodger is looking out for
you. He writes about local and state
transportation issues, and hes a daily
mass-transit user, so hes always
scouring the news about roads and
rail. Rodger also concentrates on
criminal justice and the death penalty, politics, the
Legislature, education, downtown and the arts. A Richardson resident, he arrived in Texas in time for sesquicentennial hoopla, but he hasnt forgotten his Buckeye
roots. Rodger is also known for exploring alternative
editorial forms, such as the worlds first online singing
editorial.
Email rmjones@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @RodgerMJones

JIM MITCHELL
Editorial writer, 60
Jim has been with The Dallas Morning
News since 1984, joining the editorial
board in 1998. His specialty is business and economics, but hes been
known to craft editorials on topics as
diverse as the Wright amendment
battle, emerging technologies, international AIDS
policy, city politics and cultural and societal shifts. Jim
graduated from Loyola University, earned a masters
degree in journalism from Northwestern University and
attended business and economics workshops. Meeting
Nelson Mandela in South Africa was his most unforgettable career moment.
Email jmitchell@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @JimMitchell18
TOD ROBBERSON
Editorial writer, 58
Tod is passionate about international issues, having spent a quartercentury as a correspondent and
editor covering Latin America, the
Middle East, Asia and Europe. He
likes fixing things and finding creative solutions to persistent problems, whether its
peace in Iraq or a leaky water pipe over the bathroom
sink. Hes an avid tennis player. His wife, a theater director, and actress daughter keep him busy on the Dallas
stage scene. Tods favorite novel is Ken Keseys Sometimes a Great Notion, about a tough Oregon logging
family that overcomes adversity and refuses to give a
inch.
Email trobberson@dallasnews.com
Twitter: @trobberson

BONNIE BISHOP
Assistant to the editor, 55
Bonnie handles the administrative
duties for the Editorial department
and assists on special projects. She
celebrates 29 years of working at
The Dallas Morning News.

For queries about these pages,

contact the Editorial department
Main number 214-977-8205
Email editorialboard@dallasnews.com

A15 01-05-2015 Set: 10:52:52

Sent by: cci News

BLACK
YELLOW
MAGENTA
CYAN