NWH policy differences

When someone submits a letter to the editor of the Northwest Herald by e-mail, s/he is required to include a real name, street address and phone number. A NWH employee calls that person to confirm that the letter really was submitted by that person. Recently, the NWH employee has begun asking whether the person remembers what he or she said in the letter.

The Northwest Herald will not print letters from "assumed names." In other words, it will not allow the sender of published letters to hide behind a fictitious name.

But online it's a different story. The Northwest Herald will allow anyone with access to the internet to register a fictitious name and to submit for instantaneous publication a comment through an online comment box below a news article. This allows libel, cheap shots and false information to be published, and seldom are comments removed by NWH staff.

It is time for the Northwest Herald to adopt a more responsible position and to align its online Letters policy with the policy for its print edition. Why should the policies be different?

This will reduce or eliminate the sniping and lies from the Northwest Herald. How about it, editors?