Guide to Editorial and Commentary

The Gazette Insight Section, Sunday June 2, 2024

Editorial Mission

Our mission: To guide the community’s deliberation of public issues, motivating people to get involved in the process and advocating for solutions.
The Gazette’s Insight department operates separate of the Gazette’s newsroom. The section operates with a different objective than news, but is expected to uphold the same standards of fact.

About our Editorial Board

The primary function of the editorial board is to publish staff editorials. Editorials are the consensus view of the editorial board’s members. The editorial board also interviews candidates and publishes election endorsements, which are meant to inform voters and highlight important issues. Other newsroom staffers take no part in deliberations and editorials do not influence their news coverage.

Members of the editorial board:
Todd Dorman, Insights editor/columnist
Zack Kucharski, Gazette executive editor
Becky Lutgen Gardner, Digital Content Manager
Contact: (319) 398-8262; editorial@thegazette.com

Staff Editorials

A Gazette editorial reflects the consensus opinion of the editorial board, which currently includes executive editor Zack Kucharski, digital content manager Becky Lutgen Gardner and Insight editor Todd Dorman. The board meets weekly to discuss potential editorial topics and also meets with individuals and groups providing information to inform our editorial stances. Although Gazette news coverage also informs our consensus editorial viewpoints, news coverage is not influenced by opinions expressed by the editorial board.

Gazette columnists 

Columnists share their individual viewpoints on a variety of local and state issues. Columnists still must report factual elements but are allowed to also share their own opinions and analysis.

The Gazette’s columnists include:

Todd Dorman

Staff Columns

A staff column reflects the opinion of the columnist. It is not an objective news story, although columnists use reporting, interviews and research to shape their opinions. Columnists strive for accuracy, but unlike news reporters, they can provide their personal impressions, viewpoints and opinions on an array of subjects and issues.

Guest Columns

Guest Columns: Guest columns are written by members of the community on topics of interest in Iowa and can reflect a personal viewpoint, or help explain the position of an organization. Ideas for columns can be submitted to The Gazette, or come as a response to a Gazette request to share information or a viewpoint on an important issue.

Community Letters, Letters to the Editor

Community letters give readers a chance to weigh in on a wide array of issues, political campaigns and content published in The Gazette. Letters are limited to 250 words, not including the headline, author and hometown, and are evaluated based on local relevance, quality and accuracy.

Editorial Cartoons

Editorial cartoons are graphic depictions based on current events that reflect ideas and opinions of the creator. Editorial cartoons are intended to make readers think about current political issues. The Gazette does not have a staff cartoonist on staff and uses syndicated editorial cartoons from syndicates across the country.

Ways to contribute

Submit a letter to the editor or guest column
Suggest a topic for an editorial to editorial@thegazette.com
To suggest an idea for news coverage, consult The Gazette’s newsroom directory.

Editorial Fellow Program

Our Editorial Fellow Program is intended to promote diversity of viewpoints in the The Gazette Insight section. Fellows publish two opinion columns each month on political, cultural and policy issues. Interested in becoming a fellow? Applications open in the spring of each year.

The 2025 fellows include: 
Sofia DeMartino 
Chris Espersen
David Chung