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Letters to the Editor

Published Thursday, 08-Jul-2004 in issue 863

“[I]f he wants respect rather than popularity, Nicole must be held to the same rigid journalistic standards.”

Dear Editor:

As a media scholar, I was horrified by Nicole Murray Ramirez’ most recent column:

“The talk of Hollywood is the recent decapitating of a well-known 91 year-old former screenwriter and the murder of his neighbor. Well, the young man being charged has a strong connection with San Diego, where he lived between 1998 and 2002. … He is former Marine, handsome, 27 year-old Keven Graff, who also was a go-go dancer who worked at Club Montage, Flicks and Numbers. He is also the ex-boyfriend of a well-known local gay producer and a wealthy La Jolla businessman.”

Those were his words not mine.

While certainly Nicole has a deadline to meet and must complete his columns, what is more important is his obligation to his readers – and not to write willy-nilly.

As a professional journalist, I know many editors of several publications. They would all agree with me. They would agree our responsibility is compounded exponentially as soon as we have a byline. That “Golden Rule” applies whether writing about the weather, local government, crime – or as in Nicole’s case – “Page 6 Gossip.”

Yes, his is a column.

But as a newspaperman, if he wants respect rather than popularity, Nicole must be held to the same rigid journalistic standards.

John Woods

“To show the entire letter, complete with mistakes and ramblings, is the best way.”

Dear Editor:

I love the unedited version of letters to the editor. You have printed one of mine, and you go back and forth with very conservative viewpoints, such as mine, to very liberal ones, such as the writer of “Billy Bob”. This I think is a most excellent way of doing Letters to the editor.

A line here, or a line there, and you come up with a very biased and erroneous letter much the same as Michael Moore’s film. To show the entire letter, complete with mistakes and ramblings, is the best way. Until I read in print, the Conservative and the Liberal sides, both of which seem to be fairly well represented in the “Letters” section, I really did not like your paper, but now consider it mine also.

Thank you for showing that not all Gay men and Women or to be more pc, and you know how I hate that, GLBT are not all lumped under the banner of “Left Wing Reactionaries” some of us are quite conservative. I’m so conservative in fact that on several occasions I’ve been accused of being “Straight” (shudder) nope, I’m quite gay.

Again thanks for your ongoing bravery to show the left and the right in your publication, it is most refreshing among Gay information papers, now if we could only reduce the number of sexual ads, ah well that is another topic and another ramble.

Ron Mason

Letters Policy

The Gay & Lesbian Times welcomes comments from all readers. Letters to the editor longer than 500 words will not be accepted. Send e-mail to editor@uptownpub.com; fax (619) 299-3430; or mail to PO Box 34624, San Diego, CA 92163. To be printed, letters must include the writer’s name, address and daytime phone number for verification.

All letters containing subject matter that refers to the content of the Gay & Lesbian Times are published unedited. Letters that are unrelated to the content of the publication will be published at the discretion of the editorial staff.