Writing columns for the Alligator was never my first choice-I wanted to be a reporter. I've since realized I have zero aptitude for that profession, but that's what I wanted to do. After trying and failing and trying and failing, I decided to submit something to letters@alligator.org. To my surprise, it was published as a guest column. When I got the e-mail asking for my classification and major, I turned to my roommate and said, "I am going to be opinions editor of the Alligator by the end of the summer." And it happened.
This isn't me trying to give you some Dickinson rags-to-riches bildungsroman with a journalism twist that pats me on the back for achieving my goals (although I gotta shout out to Ashley-told you I could do it, girl), but rather a way to illustrate the point that anyone can get involved with the opinions section (yep, even someone who got a C-plus in Reporting for editorializing every single story that she turned in despite her teacher telling her to cut it out every time).
But seriously, you do not have to be a journalism student, and your commitment doesn't have to be large. Letters can be sent via snail mail or to letters@alligator.org. The letters section acts as a forum for Alligator readers, whether they be students, faculty, staff or Gainesville residents.
Or you can take the path that I took and write a guest column. Columns are usually about 500 words and either cover an original topic or are written in response to anything that appears in the Alligator or on its Web site.
If you're interested in submitting either of these in the future, take note: The e-mail's subject line is really important. Leaving the subject line blank is not inviting, mysterious or seductive. You might be thinking, "They'll totally open it because they'll wanna know what's inside!"
Nope, we don't like Trojan viruses. You should probably title it either "Letter to the Editor" or "Guest Column," depending on what you're submitting. I don't think that you would consider making your subject line something with the words "free vibrator", "loan offer" or "discount prescription drugs," but we might need to tell you up front not to have it contain "Sierra Leone" (less obvious, right?), even if your submission is about Sierra Leone, blood diamonds, the movie "Blood Diamond" or Kanye West. (Each week we get about 9,000 "Dear sir or madam I am in trouble and need someone I can trust to hold my millions of USD in their bank accounts because I am fleeing from guerrilla warriors/rebels/political reactionaries, please respond promptly" scam e-mails, so now we are operantly conditioned to ignore e-mails about Africa unless the intent is clearly stated.)
Oh, and another obvious one: Please write all submissions in English.
And that's all you need to know. If you disagree with a columnist, let them know in the form of a letter or response column. If there is some injustice in Gainesville that we haven't covered, let us know. Your response lets us know how we're doing.
And one more thing: If you send your bank account information to the opinions editor, you are slated to receive 9 million USD from Olga Jones, a mysterious benefactor who lives in Cote d'Ivoire. (This was a test to see if you could pay attention and therefore submit to the Alligator and you passed. See? Easy stuff.)
