Op-ed

An op-ed (originally short for “opposite the editorial page”) is a written prose piece which presents a specific opinion as opposed to a balanced perspective.

Your task in assignment #3 is to your write your own commentary on the question you have researched in assignments 1 and 2. Present and support your one-sided position with ideas and facts learned while researching your previous assignments and in other lectures and readings during the semester. In the old days of printed newspapers citations and references were not expected in an op-ed. Nowadays, editors typically ask for hyperlinks. Please use them to provide links to the original documents your are quoting or using numbers from. Limit your use of hyperlink to one word or number. For instance, use the link for an author’s name rather than a full quote.

Your op-ed should be between 650-750 words, excluding your name, course number and student number. This assignment does not require a cover page, but it requires you to write the word count of your piece at the end of your assignments (e.g., word count: 673 words.)

Keep in mind that your audience is the general reading public, meaning people who are likely not familiar with your topic and who may not have had a post-secondary education. You must therefore draw their interest by using a catchy title and, ideally, a “hook” at the beginning of your story (e.g., “poachers have killed government officials in a nature preserve”; “ruins of a gigantic city have been discovered in the Amazon”). Explain your position using simple language, do your best to persuade and do not simply make assertions (e.g., “every expert agrees with me”).

Keep in mind that your word count is low and that you might have to use only your BEST arguments, not all the arguments that support your position.

The University offers the following guidelines to write an effective op-ed piece:
• Focus on one main idea or a single theme in your op-ed.
• Have a clear editorial viewpoint. State that point in your first paragraph, and then proceed to back up your opinion or prove your thesis.
• Look for opportunities to wed your specific area of expertise or interest with news developments
• If you can, be controversial in your opinion.
• Always write for the lay reader. Be clear and straightforward. Use simple words, short declarative sentences. Even the brainiest of readers will lose interest if your submission is replete with long, complex sentences and paragraphs.
• Make your submission as argumentative as possible. It should not appear driven by anger and it should follow methodological reasoning.
• Express a strong call to action. Write with passion and “fire in your gut.”
• Take pains to educate the reader with your insight, but don’t condescend or preach.

See also the op-ed guidelines of Carleton College.

Op-ed links
• New York Times op-ed page