An Op-ed is generally an effective way to add your perspective to the public discourse on the Middle East. The tips below can be valuable in helping you craft an effective op-ed and getting it published in your campus or community newspaper.
Tips for Writing an Effective Op-Ed
• Identify your unique point of view and use it to your advantage. For example, write from the unique vantage point you have of the debate, having first-hand knowledge of your campus environment regarding Middle East politics.
• Consider your audience and the specific purpose of the op-ed before you begin writing. Are you calling people to action? Talking “common sense” into misguided public opinion? Pressuring for a change in policy? Remember who you are writing to, and gear your writing style toward your audience’s level of knowledge. Refine your message based on who you’re writing to and stick to the message throughout the op-ed.
• State your argument in the first paragraph. Use simple sentences and avoid jargon. Focus on keeping your writing coherent so that your reader can follow your argument from point to point. Remember that most people don’t read articles or op-eds all the way through, so make your most important points at the beginning.
• Provide concrete evidence to support your points, but avoid overwhelming your readers with too many numbers or statistics. Using personal experiences and local statistics can be a powerful tool in convincing your audience.
• Analogies and quirky sound bites are helpful tools in writing op-eds (e.g. “Congress should remember the first rule of holes: when you find yourself in one, stop digging”).
• Make sure the issue you are writing on is timely, relevant and in the news. An excellent time to write an op-ed about Middle East politics is right before or after a United States president or secretary of state exerts public pressure on Israel’s leadership.
• If you are writing for a local paper, link it to local issues so the paper will be more interested in picking it up.
• Length guidelines vary from paper to paper, but op-eds are usually 500 to 800 words. Guidelines are often published in the paper or on the paper’s website. It is important that you stick to the paper’s length guidelines.
Tips for Getting Published:
• Op-eds are not easy to get published, but following through can increase your chances. Send an e-mail to the op-ed editor of the paper. You may also want to follow up with a hard copy, via fax or mail.
• Include a few sentence “pitch” that summarizes the op-ed and includes the most newsworthy points.
• Include your name, daytime phone number and address on the op-ed. Also include a short byline at the end (“X is a student at X University, president of the Zionist Freedom Alliance on her campus and just returned from a volunteer program in Israel”) and any other information the publication requests.
• Call the morning after the submission to make sure it was received (but keep your call brief).
• Only submit your op-ed to one newspaper but feel free to send variations on the same topic to other publications.