My Chicago neighborhood is served by a small, family-owned newspaper.

The newspaper published a letter to the editor some in the community didn't like. Here was the reaction.

Newsrooms assume readers understand the separation b/t reporting + opinion. Here's evidence many don't.

My heart breaks for the reporters — including those at @chicagotribune — who pour their soul into bringing communities the news ... only to have readers cancel their subscription because of an opinion piece.

The readers have that right, 100%. But the whole staff is punished.

We don't publish opinions or have columnists at @BlockClubCHI.

A few reasons why:
—We prioritize investing in neighborhood reporting, which we think there's a lack of in Chicago.
—We don't have bandwith to fact-check + vet opinions.
—There are plenty of places to read opinions.

With the rise of social media, everyone is able to get their opinion out in the world more than ever.

Twitter is one giant opinion. Neighborhood Facebook groups are FULL of opinions.

You know what's harder to suss out in those forums? Fact-based news you can trust.

Newsrooms are trying to get ppl to pay for the news who didn't grow up reading newspapers.

Can opinion sections be revamped to court those readers?

Or would papers be better off separating opinions from the main product or nixing the section altogether?

What's your ...opinion?