WHO ARE YOU WRITING FOR? — AN OP-ED TAXONOMY

When submitting op-eds, it is almost always better to pitch the opinion editor directly and

give them a day to pass rather than submitting a completed op-ed to the "opinion@"

email addresses. Most outlets require exclusivity, and using the opinion@ address can put

the piece on a shelf for five days, and the moment can pass.

New York Times

Blue chip, big names, slightly “academic” slant, with lots of pieces by professors. Very

focused on New York and U.S. domestic issues, and big international issues of interest to

U.S. East Coast readers. Audience is U.S. policy makers, civil society.

International Herald Tribune

NYT material but with more slots for international stories, with a focus on Europe. Pieces

run in print edition will also appear on the NYT main web site. Audience is European

policy makers, European civil society

Financial Times

Global financial and business issues with a preference for big names, i.e. George Soros.

Possible target for anticorruption, transparency and national security issues. Small

number of print slots, with more running online only. However, because it is held behind

a paywall, it can limit the exposure of the piece. Audience is global policy people (most

read paper at UN).

Guardian

Prime op-ed spot is “Comment is Free”, with both print/online and online only material

tightly curated by editorial team. Paper has launched U.S. website in effort to expand

U.S. audience. Also runs Guardian Professional communities, including one for law, and

Guardian Development Network, funded by Gates Foundation. Audience is UK civil

society, policy makers and center/left readers, developing U.S. civil society

New Statesman

This is a lefty British current affairs magazine that has recently expanded its online

presence. With this web push, New Statesman is becoming an alternative to Guardian’s

Comment-is-Free. However, its audience is limited to the United Kingdom and if the

story does not reach the home page, op-eds can easily slip between the cracks.

Washington Post

Heavy on DC and US foreign policy, with a preference for DC wonks.

Wall Street Journal

Like the Financial Times, but with a highly conservative US op-ed page. Separate

European and Asian editions seek to compete with FT. Audience is US finance, business

and policy makers

Christian Science Monitor

Syndicated online newspaper that focuses on global affairs and generally takes a

progressive view on issues. A benefit is that stories that appear in CSM will get picked by

a network of community newspapers (a la Project Syndicate)

Project Syndicate

A syndication service for smaller newspapers around the world, which also translates

submissions into a number of languages. Often seen as a dumping ground for pieces that

don’t make the FT or the NYT by big names, which means it has a solid pipeline.

Reuters.com Opinion

They synidicate pieces to newspapers around the world, so potentially very good reach.

But they want big names writing on issues that are in the news.

European Observer/New Europe

The two “industry” weeklies of Brussels and Strasbourg, both focused on European

policy issues.

foreignpolicy.com

High end online tabloid for international affairs, preference flashy high profile issues.

foreignaffairs.com

Like Foreign Policy with a little more starch, preference for declaring macro-trends

aljazeera.com

Very international perspective with sympathy for human rights issues

Huffington Post

Lefty, easy to post with no barrier to entry, but trick is getting visibility. Writing on

timely issues and prominent writers tend to get key placement.