In addition to PPMU, the Roosevelt Institute is the other student-run public policy organization at UNC. On November 6, I went to an Op-Ed workshop that they held. The workshop was led by Paul O'Connor--a writer for
The News and Observer and a professor at UNC.
He gave us some good tips that might be of use to any policy students that want to get their opinions published.
First, he recommended either writing a letter or submitting an op-ed piece. The other parts of the Op-ed page, the cartoon and views of the editorial board, aren't paths that are open to student input.
Second, students are best off submitting their work to a local paper (ex. DTH, the local papers in Chapel Hill, the local papers in their hometown). Papers are more likely to publish pieces from people in their jurisdiction.
Third, try to write about local issues. Or, if you want to write about a national issue such as the No Child Left Behind legislation, find a way to connect it to something local by writing about how NCLB affects the local elementary schools in Orange County.
If you're writing a letter:
- Make only one point. Be specific. Have a narrow focus. Don't tackle too much at once.
- Make sure whatever you're writing about is very current, and is related to something that was recently in the news. Ex. Writing about Global Warming isn't current unless you submit your letter after an event like Al Gore winning the Nobel prize.
- Most papers have a word limit of 200-250 words.
- Use public words, this is not the place to show off your SAT vocabulary.
- The theme of your letter should be blatantly obvious by the first paragraph.
If you're writing an op-ed piece:
- Relate it to something that was recently in the news.
- Having a hook is very important. The timing of your submission is also very important.
- Make sure that you're providing a perspective that neither the staff nor a syndicated columnist can provide.
Finally, he went through a list of 8 values that you can use to determine whether or not your issue is "newsworthy"
- Timeliness
- Proximity
- Impact
- Emotional impact
- Magnitude
- Conflict
- Celebrity
- Oddity
2) Policy Paradox: The Art of Political Decision Making (Revised Edition) by Deborah Stone is one of the books recommended by Ms. Murphy. I also personally recommend this book. I kept this book after using it in my PLCY 220 class because it was so helpful. Stone does a good job breaking down policy analysis into theoretical ideas. Stone covers the goals of policy (equity, efficiency, security, and liberty), how policy problems are defined and understood (symbols, numbers, causes, interests, and decisions), and the components of policy solutions (inducements, rules, facts, rights, and powers). She also has nifty tables that summarize the main points of each chapter that are great for refreshing your memory.
3) Writing Public Policy: A Practical Guide to Communicating In The Policy-Making Process by Catherine F. Smith is another book that Ms. Murphy highly recommends. While Stone focused more on theory, Smith is much more practical and covers all the different types of communication required of policy analysts. Some of the things she covers includes: writing legislative histories, writing argument papers, writing effective petitions, giving effective witness testimony, writing briefing memos, and soliciting public comment. Smith also includes handy checklists at the end of each chapter, and much of the information is presented in bullets or lists.
