By Sanders LaMont
American Society of Newspaper Editors © 1999
American Society of Newspaper Editors © 1999
1. Shut up and listen. The reason this reader called was because he or she had something to say about your newspaper, and they want it to be better.
2. Take even irritating callers seriously. He or she may have a valid point obscured by an obstreperous personality.
3. Respond, somehow, to every call or letter. An acknowledgment may be all that is required, but avoid lectures or sarcasm.
4. Assure each caller that the message they bring will be delivered to a person in the newspaper management who has the authority to do something about it.
5. Deliver all the messages, quickly, to the right people at the newspaper.
6. Don’t promise what you can’t deliver. Don’t give the caller the impression you will change things.
7. If the call involves a correction or retraction, get as much detail as possible and relay the information immediately to the senior editor available at that time. Don’t make promises, and don’t leave word on phone mail..
8. Make no assumptions about a caller based upon the sound of her/his voice, self-deprecating description, or apparent age. Every reader counts and has something to say.
9. Make no assumptions about newsroom folks based upon your stereotypical views of reporters and editors, or that voiced by the callers. Professional journalists don’t want to make mistakes and most are not as defensive as portrayed.
10. Be polite. It costs nothing, may open the door to a wonderful conversation, and your mother and father would be proud.
LaMont is ombudsman of The Sacramento (Calif.) Bee.
Time in Tunis