That's odd. My letter was pretty harsh, too, but all it generated was a canned reply, "I'm forwarding your comments to the "Your Views" section of the paper. Thank you for your response."

I also wrote, and received this reply from an Admin. Assistant:
"Thanks for the e-mail.  Tony's upcoming Sunday column will be discussing the same subject.  The ombudsman's office has heard from many of Dan's fans. "
Apparently, more to come.

I got that response too-
"I'm forwarding your comments to the "Your Views" section of the paper. Thank you for your response."

My response was surprisingly more personal. But nonsensical.

My letter also got the canned response. Does anybody know where the "Your Views" section of the Bee is located? Is that an alias for "Letters to the Editor"? Is it online? I couldn't find it on their web site.

While I don’t like or approve the Bee’s position on the Weintraub issue I really can’t deny them the right to act as they have.

A good paper’s editorial forum welcomes and embraces all opinion. It presents it’s own and bolsters through elucidation those that align with its opines. Equally it shows the error of opinion it disagrees with through response and counters published on the same pages as that contrary opinion.

The policy of equal, free speech on the editorial pages is one Americans have come to expect in a paper. However there is no requirement for a paper’s publishers to publish opinion it does not support. Editing or excluding opinion on a paper’s editorial pages is very different from applying the same editorial license in news reporting, for which, should it occur on the journalistic side of the house, said editor(s) should be mercilessly bitch-slapped ‘till they cry for pity and are summarily booted out the door.

With Weintraub I believe the Bee is within its rights. If Weintraub has strong editorial opinions that run contrary to those of his paper’s he should start his own blog and state them there, where they are beyond Bee censure. And if the Bee should ever give him even the slightest flack for anything Weintraub writes on his own blog see the comment above on the opportune use of the bitch-slap, which in these circumstances I would be glad to assist Weintraub in delivering.

I got the canned ("your views") response. Judging from the sample of letters I've seen here and elsewhere, they are getting an earful from some very articulate readers. Can't wait to see how they respond.

It would be delightful to see traffic figures, including the new group blog.

I got the canned response too. Since I ended my letter with "If I were Weintraub, I tell the editors to go bleep [yes, I used bleep and not the more colorful term] themselves," I'm surprised I didn't get the "we're insulted, don't write again" answer. Ah well, I guess I have things to learn about being provocative.

Weintraub could answer one of their supposed concerns by taking his blog to its own domain, severing any seeming ties to the Bee, but I don't suppose he'll go that far.

Oh, come on, Dan - print the entire email! This is the blogosphere - let us judge for our selves. Post, RTWT, fisk, bleg, engage in a comments-section flamewar - it's the blog way!

So why doesn't Weintraub move the blog away from the Bee web site and dissociate the blog from his Newspaper work?

The fact is, the Weintraub is well known because of its association with the Sac Bee web page, and draws Sac Bee readers. Therefore he either must give up this free customer base or submit to editorial review by the Sac Bee editors who provide this free customer base.

Jon - you're missing the point here. No one questions whether or not the Bee has a right to do what they did. Of course they do. They also have the right to devote all future articles to an in-depth perspective on Cruz Bustamante's navel. That doesn't mean that doing so would be a good idea, however, and it certainly doesn't mean they shouldn't expect a firestorm of criticism from the Blogosphere if they did.

Matt: Short of quitting the Bee altogether, I seriously doubt that Weintraub has the option of run a non-Bee blog on his own. Otherwise, he'd do it, as would editors and writers from every other major (or, in the Bee's case, minor) paper.

Dan, I think you mean the Bee's "editorial page" staff has started a group blog. The culture clash, if it exists, is with the news side. (I think and have blogged that the clash does exist, and is what's really going on here.) Meanwhile, this isn't getting as much attention as it deserves: Weintraub says it's much ado about nothing.

Xrlq - I think we’re on the same page re: the Bee’s new editorial policy. I never said that I agree with the Bee’s stance or that one should not criticize the Bee for its position.

Let the firestorm reign, replete with burny-sticky bits that hurt and smell bad. I know I sent them my opinion of their new editorial policy – that it runs completely counter to the spirit and intent of an editorial page to foster discussion and argument on issues touching society at large. I even included a rather direct and suggestive summary statement.

Whether I support the Bees new editorial policies or not, the Bee has a right to enforce those policies as it deems best. As members of the public we have an equal right to respond with praise and criticism to those policies. Two effective methods to express criticism of the Bee are financial and civil pressure. #1 is out as I don’t live in Sacramento. I added voice to #2. I don’t see that criticizing the Bee’s policies while supporting their right to set those policies is contradictory.

I Live in the small town of Weaverville, located in Trinity County, in the Alps. It appears that every time it rains, snows, wind blows etc. the Sac Bee is not delivered to the newsstands. Are you guys fair weather creatures, afraid of Buckhorn Pass. We get the Record Searchlight without fail, whats going on? I really enjoy the Bee and all its contents, but then again only in fair weather. Any comments?