Make your voice heard: How students can use campus newspapers to voice their values.

It is not easy to be an island of conservatism in the liberal sea that is a college campus.  Not only do conservatives hold different values than their peers, but universities often tout their very existence as a threat to students’ safety, resulting in speakers being banned and safe spaces being built. Conservative students face a sense of isolation and it is much easier to dip into the shadows than voice their opinions under a barrage of accusations of racism or sexism. It seems like the safe-space-crazies and the thought police are the only students who are allowed have their voices heard on campus, but you can change that.

Your campus newspaper is the tool to use when countering leftist students. It might be tempting to sit back and fight with people on Facebook, but if there is an honest pull to open the minds of fellow students, social media is not the way to go. Beyond that, liberals are more likely to block people with differing political philosophies. Campus newspapers provide a platform for your voice and your values that is available to every student. It is the pathway for conservatives to join the conversation.

While some campuses are lucky enough to have conservative campus newspaper, many colleges only have one main paper. The best way to spread conservatism is to try to get a position as a writer. Conservatives may face discrimination in hiring, but offering to do a regular point-counter-point with a liberal student may get your foot in the door.

If you are unable to land a position with the campus newspaper or want less of a commitment, a letter to the editor is the best option.  Letters to the editor are brief, powerful, and easy to do.  There is a higher chance of your letter being published if it is a response to recently published content, but independent letters still have a chance to be published. Most newspapers have an online submission where they clarify word limits. If the do not clarify word limits, the typical word limit is under 250 words.

It can be difficult to form a well-researched argument into 250 words, so it is best to be as concise as possible.  This raises your chances of being published and the typical reader will be able to receive your message with less effort. After writing your letter and editing it for both grammar and factual accuracy, submit the letter and wait to see if it runs in the print edition. If it is published, be sure to follow the letter to the editor’s section in case someone responds to you. If it is not published, follow up with the editor to ensure they received it and to find out why it was not published.

If they do not respond and refuse to publish your letter, you still have options. There are multiple national news organizations that focus on covering liberal bias on campus including Campus Reform and The College Fix.  These publications take submissions and they will even have student reporters cover the issue beyond the original tip provided.

The hardest part of writing a letter to the editor for a conservative student is signing their name to the bottom of the letter. All students and professors have access to the publication and their responses can be less than mature, but it is worth it.

It is worth it to have the moral courage to speak out in defense of your values and to stand for what you believe it. While there might be a backlash, you never know whom you may reach. You could open—or even change—the minds of your peers. You could also draw the attention of conservative faculty members or alumni who will step in and support you.

Your campus newspaper is a platform for you to share your values and disrupt the echo chamber the left has created on college campuses.

Maddy Dibble

University of Minnesota