How to Write a Political Newsletter

Politics has long been a popular topic of discussion almost anytime and anywhere. For some people though, it becomes more than just conversation fodder and grows into an obsession that they want to feed by writing their own newsletter. In just a few short steps, you too can write a political newsletter and have your voice heard.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Decide on your newsletter's purpose. Are you looking just to inform people about a general problem or get them to support a specific cause? Whatever your intentions, choose a side of an issue that you most identify with and let your conscience be your guide.
2. Begin writing your newsletter by outlining potential headlines and the order in which you want them to appear. They can either be themed together to thoroughly cover a particular issue or selected randomly for their timeliness to current events. Most importantly, your headlines should be snappy enough to grab a reader's attention and reel them in for at least the first few sentences of the article.
3. Research your articles before you write anything. While a newsletter is more informal than a newspaper, you should still strive to be as informed as possible about the news you are covering so that your audience will both want to listen to what you have to say and respect the way you are saying it.
4. Incorporate as many supporting facts from your research as possible into our writing and steer clear of making wildly caustic remarks that might alienate your readers off the bat. If necessary, hire an editor to help you weed out any questionable material.
5. Design your newsletter by placing your hottest topics toward the top. Don't be afraid of including visual aids that will draw in your audience such as charts and photographs. If you are distributing your newsletter online, remember that you have the added convenience of incorporating other kinds of digital media like video and sound to help get your point across.
6. Gather a mailing list of people who will be responsive to your ideas. A great way to do this is to get involved with a local political organization that closely mirrors your views and either ask for a copy of their mailing list or use your networking skills to collect one on your own. Another option to expand your audience is by purchasing a list of viable addresses from a mail house.
7. Contact local businesses that you think are aligned with your political stance and ask for advertising dollars. Revenue that you receive from their support can go into building a wider mailing list, hiring guest writers or covering distribution costs.
8. Figure out how you want to distribute your newsletter and work quickly to get it sent in a timely manner. Depending on how much buzz you've already created for it, your readers will be eager to check out what you have to say and any delays might force them to lose interest, particularly if you are covering time sensitive topics.

Tips & Warnings

• Think carefully about how you will handle readers who contact you with opposing views. Instead of blatantly offending them, embrace their perspective and try to counter it gracefully. You never know when your remarks might come back to haunt you.