Freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Two ideals that should, all things considered, partner each other well. That is until they don’t, which some believe to be the case here at The Beachcomber recently.

This is, as you may have guessed, about those pesky letters-to-the-editor we keep printing. Shamelessly, it’s said, and much to the displeasure of a few of our readers.

Well, here’s the thing: As a newspaper, we have a responsibility to not only provide our readers with objective and unbiased reporting, but also an open forum for the expression of opinion — specifically, in the form of op eds (commentaries) and letters to the editor. Originally, letters were published because they were a primary means of delivering news. Things have changed since that simpler time, but they do continue to serve several purposes, not the least of which is to help keep us all accountable. And that includes being accountable to your community by being aware and accepting of the fact that not everyone feels the same way about everything, regardless of how righteous we feel about what we believe.

We have received comments, emails and phone calls about the printing of some recent letters. People think we should be ashamed of ourselves, some have even said they will no longer read The Beachcomber. What those who are angry at the paper don’t seem to understand is that publishing these letters does not equate to endorsement of the sentiments expressed.

There are, in fact, industry standards and guidelines for printing letters to the editor, and this is probably a good time to share some of those with you:

1. Letters submitted anonymously should not be printed, with only rare exceptions.

2. Most are limited to between 200 and 500 words; The Beachcomber’s maximum word count for a letter is 300.

3. Profanity, libelous statements and personal attacks against individuals, specific organizations or groups are not acceptable.

4. We won’t print anything that we know is not true, and we do our best to check facts, just like we would do for any story we write. If you state something as a fact — as opposed to an opinion — be prepared to be challenged if we can’t verify it or find any information to support it.

You may not like some of the things you read from your fellow islanders. But we won’t stop printing unpopular opinions just because they’re … unpopular.

It’s not our job to keep our readers ignorant of, or sheltered from, unpleasantness. It is our job, and yours, to be informed about and awake to the world around us.