Our commitment to the free exchange of ideas
By Op/Ed Staff
It is no secret that The Carroll News has sparked controversy and conversation on campus with the four editions of the paper that we have released this semester. We are elated to see that people feel compelled to express their thoughts amongst their friends and organizations as well as take advantage of writing letters to the editor.
While many people feel as though The Carroll News has been a bit radical in some of the columns being published, we as an editorial staff have grown to value our differing opinions. We each have our own individual voice that is expressed through our columns. The editors on the Op/Ed staff have vastly different personalities, backgrounds and thoughts, which makes the section quite interesting to read. This is one of the main reasons we decided to implement the “Head-to-Head” portion of the section. We wanted to display that there can be two very different sides to any issue, and that our editors are able to approach the topic from either side. Furthermore, it allows our readers to experience hot-button topics from different perspectives, and maybe — if we do our jobs right — find points that resonate with them.
Even though we do not always agree with each other, we are able to understand and appreciate opposing views. The Op/Ed section is meant to display opinions from multiple people for this purpose — for others to read, learn and take away some sort of new understanding, even if it did not change the reader’s original view. We hope that, with the balance of ideas represented in the Op/Ed section, our readers find it accessible and find something that connects with their personal beliefs and views. When that isn’t the case, we welcome feedback, no matter how negative it may be. This openness to response and criticism has been on clear display in our publication of many letters to the editor in recent weeks.
We stand by what we publish, and we will continue to let all of our different perspectives be shown through this section. As we change as people, our writing will reflect our growth and reveal what we learn through our experiences. We hope that we, as a staff, and you who read our work can all grow from seeing topics presented from points of view that differ from our own. Our intention is not to create a divide within our staff or our student body as a whole. Our goal is to lead by example and demonstrate that we can coexist despite our opposing opinions. Hopefully the wider community of JCU chooses to follow this example and engage in productive, thoughtful debate about the things that matter most.
