The media should make a clear distinction between news and opinion. We are committed to making sure we do not blur the lines between news reporting and opinion pieces.

The Valdosta Daily Times places opinion pieces on its editorial pages under the page header Point Of View. An open marketplace of ideas, a public square of sorts, is important in an open and free society and newspapers have a long legacy of providing a free open forum.

On our website each newspaper editorial begins with the word “EDITORIAL” before the headline so you know what you are reading is not a straight news story. Opinion columnists are marked by the name of the columnist capitalized, before the headline, online.

We strongly believe news should always be news and commentary should always be labeled.

Commentary is important. Stimulating a civil public discourse is essential to an open and free society. Editorials make us all think, regardless of ideology, and they should.

Editorials belong on editorial pages and should always be clearly marked on websites or clearly identified when broadcast on television or radio. The blending of opinion with facts makes readers skeptical of facts. There should always be clear lines of demarcation drawn between news reporting and opinion pieces.

Opinion writing is not only important, it is necessary if we are going to hold the powerful accountable. However, readers should always be able to clearly discern the nature of the information they are reading, listening to or viewing. Is it news or opinion? Opinions are neither right nor wrong. They are just opinions, and thoughtful media consumers will evaluate opinion pieces and agree or disagree. That’s the way it should be.

If there is an opinion in a news report, it should only be the opinion of a newsmaker, a source, in which case it is a fact that the opinion being reported is what the person said they believe on a particular subject during an interview with a reporter who is just writing what the source said. A reporter’s job is to collect facts then write the report in a clear and understandable way without tainting the report with the writer’s opinions.

Yes, we have strong opinions and are not afraid to share them with our readers but we don’t expect everyone to agree with every opinion. We do hope our editorials make you think.

Our strong commitment to not blurring the line between news reporting and opinion writing is the reason you will always find the opinions of the newspaper, columnists, cartoonists and letter writers right here on the Point Of View page, where they belong. By clearly labeling all editorials on our website, we hope the difference between news and commentary will be even more clear for all our readers.