More scrutiny of letters needed

I am writing to express my concern about a letter to the editor that was published in the Mountain Xpress on Wednesday, April 2 [”Had Enough of Stewart David’s Letters.”].  The letter was written by Winthrop E. Dow. This letter consisted of a personal attack on Steward David, a citizen of Asheville who has consistently written thoughtful articles about the connection between diet, the environment, health, and compassion towards animals.

I could understand publishing Mr. Dow’s letter if he had taken issue with one of Mr. David’s positions and offered a rebuttal for your readers.  But all Mr. Dow did was personally attack Mr. David. The Mountain Xpress should be a venue for people to express opinions on issues, not a venue to personally attack individual citizens.  In fact, the Asheville Citizen-Times‘ editorial policy does not even allow letters to contain the name of a private citizen.

Please exercise more scrutiny of your letters in the future. They should be about issues, not people.

Carrie Stilwell
Asheville

Mountain Xpress Responds

We regret running the April 2 letter, “Had Enough of Stewart David’s Letters.” Although we felt at press time that the letter was a general complaint and not a personal attack, we understand that it can be interpreted as the latter and also that it does not encourage dialogue about the issues. Mr. David has written letters and commentary for Xpress for many years. We value his contributions as we do those of all of our active readers.

 
SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Letters
We want to hear from you! Send your letters and commentary to letters@mountainx.com

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

One thought on “More scrutiny of letters needed

  1. AshevilleObserver

    While Mr. Dow’s letter was expressed strongly, it captured the feeling of some readers (perhaps many) that Mr. David’s letters, with their recurring and unvarying theme, are published more often than good journalism might warrant. Sorry to see MX apologizing for giving another reader an opportunity to express a dissenting view.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.