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Thursday, July 1, 2021

Opinion: Clearly labeling opinion journalism is essential. We're making sure to do so on social media. - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Hall is the editorial and opinion director at The San Diego Union-Tribune. He is (always) on Twitter, @sduncovered. His email is matthew.hall@sduniontribune.com.

When I took the helm of the Opinion section of The San Diego Union-Tribune more than five and a half years ago, we faced a decision.

I’m not talking about our endorsement in the 2016 presidential election, although that was a heck of a choice we faced, too. I’m talking about how we chose to brand our social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to help our editorials, commentaries, letters to the editor and editorial cartoons surface and stand out in a crowd.

On Twitter and Instagram, we created @sdutIdeas. On Facebook, we maintained @sdutopinion, which is how the page was created on May 5, 2011, with a post that read, “This is the new Opinion page. Enjoy.” Trying to change the Facebook account back then required cutting through too much red tape, so we focused on the other platforms.

Why pick “Ideas” and not “Opinion” on Twitter? Because Twitter has character limits and because I wanted to emphasize the “ideas” aspect of our journalism. Everyone has opinions, my thinking went. Not everyone has original or even thoughtful ideas.

I wanted the Union-Tribune Ideas & Opinion section to be a place for discussing ideas and for provoking thought, for involving everyone, and for improving the region, every day, for the small price of a paid subscription.

I love the name @sdutIdeas, but today we say goodbye to it. Today, we’re announcing a rebranding of our Twitter and Instagram accounts to @sdutopinion. It’s probably what we should have done all along. But as regular readers of our section know, I’m not above reconsidering a position, either in philosophy or in actuality.

But this switch isn’t just about having our branding be the same across the board on social media. It’s also about media literacy, and trust. Studies show people still have a hard time telling the difference between news and opinion.

The news side of the Union-Tribune covers stories without bias, impartially, without “fear or favor,” as the saying goes. The opinion side follows the same ethical principles, but our opinion journalism is, well, opinionated, by nature. We still try to respect and involve all views and all people, but we have a point of view, and we own it.

These days, trust in the news is cratering. Gallup surveys show just 40 percent of Americans trust mass media. A recent Reuters Institute poll showed that Americans have less trust in the news than residents of 45 other countries, at a mere 29 percent.

Clearer labeling of opinion journalism is one way we are trying to reverse that decline. We clearly label our team’s journalism on our website and social media posts as opinion. Now we want the brand itself to signify that. If you see a tweet or an Instagram post from @sdutopinion, know that it is from our opinion team.

It may be that you’re seeing our own editorials or readers’ letters to the editor or commentary from experts or people with lived experiences. But know that it is opinion journalism, held to high standards of fairness, accuracy and civility, regardless of who wrote it. We want you to know that, to understand and appreciate it.

As of now, when you search for our journalism on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook, please type or tap @sdutopinion. You’ll still see all of our old tweets. We’ve just changed the name to showcase the more common catch-all term that distinguishes @sdut from @sdutopinion. We hope you join us there, and share ideas and opinions of your own. The conversation will be the same. The journalism will continue to be thoughtful, and insightful, and fun.

Just this week, we asked, “What is the best TV show or movie associated with San Diego?” Last week, we asked, “What is an underrated summer activity in San Diego?” The week before that, we asked, “If you could change one thing about San Diego, what would it be?”

Here’s another question for you: “What’s in a name?

William Shakespeare was right when he answered his own question, saying, “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

Now, you may think the opinions you read in our section stink, but to us, they’re all part of a respectful, necessary conversation to make San Diego a little better every day. Let us know how you feel. Tag us on social media. Drop me an email. Share your thoughts. This is the new Opinion page. Enjoy.

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"Opinion" - Google News
July 02, 2021 at 05:44AM
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Opinion: Clearly labeling opinion journalism is essential. We're making sure to do so on social media. - The San Diego Union-Tribune
"Opinion" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2FkSo6m
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