Open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally.[1][2]
Open letters usually take the form of a letter addressed to an individual but are provided to the public through newspapers and other media, such as a letter to the editor or blog.[3] Critical open letters addressed to political leaders are especially common.
Two of the most famous and influential open letters are
Context
In previous centuries, letter writing was a significant form of communication. Letters were normally kept private between the sender and recipient. Consequently, an open letter, usually published in a newspaper or magazine, was a then-rare opportunity for the general public to see what a public figure was saying to another public figure.[4] Open letters, published in newspapers, became more common in the late 19th century.[3]
In the 21st century, documents labeled open letters are common and similar to
When academic scientists publish open letters about science, they may use some of the same features that they use in academic writing, such as seeking informal peer review before publication or believing that the act of communicating itself is a meritorious scholarly activity.[5]
Motivations for writing
There are a number of reasons why an individual would choose the form of an open letter, including the following reasons:
- To publicly criticize something[3][6]
- To state the author's opinion[3]
- As an attempt to start, or to end,[6] a wider dialogue around an issue
- As an attempt to focus broad attention on the letter's recipient, prompting them to some action
- As part of public relations crisis communication or organizational reputation management[7][8]
- For humorvalue
- To make public a communication that must take place as a letter for reasons of formality
Problems
Open letters tend not to
Signatories may feel pressured to sign an open letter written by someone else instead of writing their own.[4] Even if the letter is badly written or does not fully or accurately reflect each signer's own views, to refuse to endorse it may be taken as complete disagreement with the general concept.[4] In other cases, the signer may not fully understand the contents.[4]
Examples
- "Yorkshire Slavery" by abolitionist Richard Oastler in 1830, about exploitative child labor practices in English textile mills[3]
- Letter from Birmingham Jail by civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in 1963, about racism and civil rights[2]
- Letter to The Times, signed by 364 economists in 1981, urging then-Chancellor Geoffrey Howe to adopt a different economic policy (he refused)[3]
- "tax wealthy people more[2]
See also
External links
References
- BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e O'Shea, Samara (22 March 2012). "An Open Letter ... About Open Letters". NPR.org. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "The rise of the open letter". BBC News. 23 March 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
- ISSN 0022-0418.
- ^ ISSN 1085-794X.
- ISSN 1553-118X.
- ISSN 2167-4795.
- ^ Kaufmann, Eric Peter (1 March 2021). Academic Freedom in Crisis: Punishment, Political Discrimination, and Self-Censorship (PDF) (Report). Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 March 2021.
Hard authoritarianism entails no-platforming, dismissal campaigns, social media mob attacks, open letters, and formal complaints and disciplinary action, and stems mainly from a subgroup of illiberal far-left activist staff and students. I find that only a small minority of academic staff are protagonists. Figure 1 shows support for cancellation across five surveys and five hypothetical scenarios involving controversial academics.
- Eric Kaufmann (1 March 2021). "Academic Freedom in Crisis: Punishment, Political Discrimination, and Self-Censorship". Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology (Executive summary). Archived from the original on 1 March 2021.
- ^ Wong Ken, Steph (Spring 2023). ""Worlds appear from her big mouth": The Mutiny of Online Open Letters". C Magazine. Retrieved 12 November 2023.