Letter: Xpress should broaden letters’ focus

The Citizen Times’ parent organization, Gannett, has made a decision to reduce the daily letters to the editor to a Sunday-only format. It’s my thought that this gives the Mountain Xpress an opportunity to expand the topics and length of the letters to the editor column. My guess is a good number of individuals will begin submitting letters to the Mountain Xpress because of the reduced opportunities in the Citizen Times.

Traditionally, your format has been a locally focused forum of shared ideas. I would encourage you to expand it to cover national and international issues so that writers of letters to the editor have more topics they can speak to, and your readers will be exposed to more food for thought.

In addition, visitors from throughout the nation and around the world who visit Asheville will see with every weekly issue of the Mountain Xpress that our community has a deep interest in shared, thoughtful, well-articulated topics that are local, countrywide and international.

— Richard Boyum
Candler

Editor’s response: Thank you for writing in with your suggestion. We most definitely want to encourage letters that are thoughtful and well articulated. However, since its founding, Xpress has focused on the news, issues, arts and culture of Asheville and Western North Carolina — a decidedly local emphasis that extends to the Opinion pages. Our mission continues to be: “To build community and strengthen democracy by serving an active, thoughtful readership at the local level, where the impact of citizen action is greatest.” So, yes to more food for thought in Xpress — as long as the flavors remain local.