This document provides guidance on how to professionally and constructively respond to feedback from readers about a publication. It suggests acknowledging readers' perspectives without being defensive, and framing feedback as an opportunity for discussion and improvement rather than personal criticism. Responses should thank readers for their input and indicate how it will be considered, without dismissing concerns or disagreeing outright. The goal is open communication that encourages further engagement.

1. Responding Professionally
Our readers say things.
It’s important to know what to say back.

2. Readers give us feedback
 It’s important to always frame
feedback as readers caring about
what we do.
 So how to best respond when people
come to you and point out a flaw in the
paper or to talk about an article they
disagree with?

3. “I noticed you misspelled…”
 People will often point out copy errors
they notice.

4. “I noticed you misspelled…”
 This is NOT a helpful response:
◦ “We spent a lot of time working on the
paper and we check the pages over.”
◦ “I bet you have copy errors in your work,
too sometimes.”
◦ “We know.”

5. “I noticed you misspelled…”
 This IS a helpful response:
◦ “Thank you for bringing it to my attention.”
◦ “I will mention it during our issue post-
critique and let the section editor know.”
◦ (if the error is significant, like a name or
grade error): “We will include it in our
next issue corrections, and make sure it is
corrected online.”

6. “The article should have
included…”
 Readers will see content gaps that we
don’t see based on their experience
with a topic.

7. “This article should have
included…”
 This is NOT a helpful response:
◦ “Well, we can’t rewrite it, can we?”
◦ “That’s not how the writer saw it.”
◦ “We’d already quoted all the people who
could say that in previous stories.”
◦ “I disagree… I like it the way it is.”

8. “This article should have
included…”
 What IS a helpful response:
◦ “Thank you for bringing that to me.”
◦ “I’d like to share your feedback with the
writer; perhaps that is a perspective they
can add to the story online.”
◦ “I’d encourage you to write a Letter to the
Editor for us to publish in the next issue.”

9. “I disagree with what you
published about…”
 It’s not uncommon for readers to have
their own opinions, and they may
contradict what we’ve written.

10. “I disagree with what you
published about…”
 What is NOT a helpful response:
◦ “Well, that’s your opinion.”
◦ “I disagree with you.”
◦ “We have sources; what are your
sources?”
◦ “You are right; the writer was wrong.”

11. “I disagree with what you
published about…”
 What IS helpful:
◦ “Thank you for reading the piece.”
◦ “The Rubicon is designed to encourage
discussion in the community, and I’m glad
you’re talking about it.”
◦ “I’ll bring your feedback to the section
editor / EIC.”
◦ “I encourage you to write a Letter to the
Editor or a guest Opinion piece.”

12. An article gets posted on the
Opinion Board
 We are fortunate to have this space
where students engage. However, it is
rarely fun when we end up there,
because people don’t post what they
LIKE in the issue.

13. An article gets posted on the
Opinion Board
 What is NOT helpful:
◦ Engaging in conversations around the
Opinion Board about the piece.
◦ Voicing that you didn’t agree with writer
either.
◦ Posting your own opinion or a response to
the original post.

14. An article gets posted on the
Opinion Board
 What IS helpful:
◦ Taking time to read the post.
◦ Bringing what you hear from others to
class to relay that perspective to the EIC.
◦ Framing (in your own mind) that you can
disagree with a writer and still support
their freedom of speech.
◦ Share with others that the EIC will post a
statement from The Rubicon.

15. “Why didn’t you cover…?”
 Often, readers are looking for stories
that we either opted not to cover or
didn’t know about.

16. “Why didn’t you cover…?”
 What is NOT helpful:
◦ “We work really hard.”
◦ “We can’t cover everything.”
◦ “It’s not that important to the larger
student body.”
◦ “It isn’t timely anymore.”

17. “Why didn’t you cover…?”
 What IS helpful:
◦ “Thanks for letting me know about it.”
◦ “Can I bring this idea to the staff?”
◦ “Would you be willing to share a quote
and/or photos [related to the story/event],
so we can include your voice if we choose
to pursue the story?”

18. “Nobody reads The Rubicon.”
 Honestly, I’m not sure why people say
this. Anyone who looks up in the
hallway on a day the paper drops can
see lots of people reading The
Rubicon. We have hundreds of
subscribers and we mail the paper all
over the nation. But…

19. “Nobody reads The Rubicon.”
 What is NOT helpful:
◦ Saying what I just wrote
◦ Saying nothing

20. “Nobody reads The Rubicon.”
 What IS helpful:
◦ “What could we write about that you
would want to read?
◦ “Maybe a print edition isn’t your thing:
have you looked at our Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, YouTube?”

21. “The Rubicon is a cult”
 Personally, I’ve never heard this, but I
know you have.

22. “The Rubicon is a cult”
 What is NOT helpful:
◦ “No we aren’t.”
◦ “Yeah… kind of.”
◦ “Don’t hate on my RubiFamily!”
◦ Saying nothing

23. “The Rubicon is a cult.”
 What IS helpful:
◦ “One of The Rubicon’s goals is to include
a quote, image, or story about every
student in the community during the year.”
◦ AND… “The Rubicon polls the student
body nearly every month to get their
opinions.”
◦ AND… “Can you think of any other
student group or athletic team that
engages people outside their group like
that? I can’t.”

24. “I really liked…”
 Not all the feedback we get is
negative. On the contrary, we feel
compelled to respond to the negative,
but we hear a lot of positive.

25. “I really liked…”
 What is NOT helpful:
◦ “That’s why we win all those awards.”

26. “I really liked…”
 “That’s really nice to hear.”
 “My favorite part of writing it / creating
it, etc…”
 “I appreciate it.”
 “Is there anything else you can think of
that you’d like to see us cover?”
 “Thanks for reading The Rubicon.”