Understanding diverse ways we share opinions

We throw a lot of different voices at you on the Opinion page from day to day. Sorting among them can be confusing, so let's take a moment today to make sure things are clear.

First, keep in mind the difference between "Our View," a statement from members of our Editorial Board representing the institutional voice of the paper, and other material on the Opinion page. This is traditionally referred to as an editorial, and, with rare exceptions, it's virtually the only venue where we speak directly to readers.

Everything else on the page is the opinion of someone else - cartoonists, letter writers, guest columnists and syndicated columnist. In all these areas, we strive to provide a variety of voices, styles and opinions in hopes that, whatever your own views, you'll find opportunities to be challenged, uplifted or entertained. For the most part, the distinctions between these types of writing are probably obvious, but they may not be quite as clear between the guest columns and the syndicated columns.

In general, guest columns, or op-eds as we sometimes call them, are reserved for local individuals with special authority on some community issue or broader issue of public concern, though often, we publish guest essays from writers outside our circulation area who have expertise in some topic with a particular impact in the suburbs. On rare occasions, we reach out to a political leader, policymaker or activist involved with a particular issue to seek commentary, but it is most common that guest views are items we accept from writers who appeal to us to publish their views. We get a dozen or more such solicitations every week, so we are selective about the items of this nature we decide to publish. Most guest columns we publish appear only in the Daily Herald, though we occasionally accept pieces that may appear in other papers or websites.

We have no particular routine for when we publish guest columns, though a handful of local writers with singular credentials on policy or social matters appear frequently - notably Keith Peterson, a one-time Daily Herald editorial writer who went on to serve nearly three decades as a U.S. diplomat; Ralph Martire, director of a statewide economic institute with special expertise in Illinois finances; and Arthur I. Cyr, a professor who examines contemporary issues through the lens of an author and historian.

Our most common commentaries come from syndicated writers whose work appears in newspapers across the country. We indicate their syndicate - usually either Creators or Universal - with a copyright symbol at the end of the column, unlike guest columns, for which we always add a line of explanation to help readers assess the writer's qualifications for sharing the views they express.

We who deal with terms like these daily can easily begin to assume that everyone understands them exactly as we do. Such assumptions can be dangerous and lead to misunderstanding or confusion. If you've wondered about some of these specifics, I hope this explanation helps clarify things for you - and, of course, if you're ever uncertain or just wonder about fundamental factors such as these, feel free to email me any time. I'll be glad to answer any questions I can.

• Jim Slusher, jslusher@dailyherald.com, is managing editor for opinion at the Daily Herald. Follow him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jim.slusher1 and on Twitter at @JimSlusher.