Grappling with future brings outpouring of angst.

An API seminar on the future became a hot-button session in the present tense.

The trouble began innocently enough, with the editorialist's natural desire to examine all points of view.

To help shape the American Press Institute's discussion in May about the future of the editorial page, I asked the participants what changes they hoped to see on editorial pages five years from now. So asking about their fears as well seemed only natural.

Talk about a hot-button topic. From almost all the 21 delegates came an outpouring of angst and uncertainty unprecedented in my experience with API's annual seminar for editorial page editors and writers.

Sometimes the tone bordered on fatalism - if editorial pages aren't swept away by the avalanche of "civic" or "public" journalism, they'll be rendered irrelevant by the profusion of electronic communications, where all opinions are equally valid simply because they are opinions.

Being editorialists, you think I exaggerate. Judge for yourselves with this sampling from 10 participants. Since I didn't ask permission, the quotes aren't attributed. But the concern crossed all lines, from 500,000-circulation dailies to papers as small as 25,000, from editorialists with months of experience to those with a decade on the job.

* "I fear that the present trend toward reader-driven editorial pages will continue to the point where we have little or no control over what goes into our opinion pages."

* "I worry that newspapers will abdicate the role of shaping opinions totally to readers and that we'll become so interested in reader participation that we'll become like talk radio - dominated by extremists."

* "I fear that, like those snazzy 'facilitators' with the perfect hair and teeth, we'll worry more about building consensus than sparking discussion."

* "My fear? The newspaper will cease to be a voice in the community with an identifiable philosophy. It will stop trying to lead and will only reflect."

* "What I fear to see? 'Innovations' that lead to the gradual extinction of the editorial page. As newspapers become more market-oriented and less community-oriented, editorial pages may be seen less as assets and more as liabilities."

* "I fear that in the rush to modernize newspapers, thoughtful commentary will get less attention and space."

* "I worry that few people worry about our words, unless we are goring their ox. I fear that may be inevitable. I fear our attempts to change may amount to wasted energy because no one is listening.

* "Fear to see? That we totally pull out of the picture and become the print equivalent of dumbed-down, unthinking, attack-talk radio, with no analysis or judgment of opinion."

* "The general denial of expertise implicit in many efforts to make our pages more 'relevant.'"

* "I expect to see a smaller range of opinions as those with wilder notions are swept aside by political correctness and a desire not to offend anyone."

Depressing words, you think. Fighting words, it turns out.

Kick more butt

After hearing their own fears, the API participants protested that they weren't being so much fatalistic as realistic. This is what will happen, they said, unless editorial pages vigorously defend and assert their rightful role. Which these editorialists intend to do.

Of course, lots of debate ensued about the nature of that rightful role and of the voice (institutional? personal? community?) with which the editorial page speaks. But we had general agreement - even a consensus, dare I say - that editorial pages have a bright future if they rediscover strong opinions and a sense of community.

As one editorial writer said: "We should kick more butt."

How will public journalism affect editorial writing in the next 10 years? The next 50 years?

It is likely a fad and will have considerable effect in the next 10 years in focusing topics (and thus also limiting them). It will be a historic footnote in 50 years.

- VIRGIL SWING

At this one mid-sized paper we are focusing more now than we did even a year ago on being CONSTRUCTIVE in our criticisms, not just DESTRUCTIVE. We have a civic journalism project on community leadership; our own challenge is to exercise it (leadership) - well.

- BARBARA MANTZ DRAKE

It won't be anything more than a ripple in the Internet-ization of the world.

- DENNY BONAVITA

A fad founded on circulation problems that will happily pass.

- RICHARD F. AHLES

It should if nothing else yield more meaningful topics - getting beyond the bulletin-board syndrome.

- CHARLES REINKEN

Editorial writing is public journalism. The question is whether public journalism has any business on the news pages.

- KEITH MONROE

In 10 years: Get editorial writers off duffs more. 50 years: Keep us alert.

- DICK WELLS

It will water down strong, thought-out opinions.

- JOHN P. REILLY

Editorial writing will have to keep pace with the communities where the writers reside, or at least within the coverage area of the paper. Public journalism may be obsolete within 50 years.

- LISA PARKER

I hope it will encourage media to launch more crusades aimed at making democracy and government work for citizens and their communities.

- MATT ZENCEY

Editorial pages should pay more attention to public needs and desires. If we do that, we'll be doing what good journalistic practice always prescribed.

- PAUL SCHATT

Adversely.

- HOLMES ALEXANDER

It's a fad. You can't preserve editorial independence and journalistic objectivity while leading the parade.

- BARRY RASCOVAR

More people will want more viewpoints represented. If we're smart, we will consider those requests.

- BONNIE L. BLACKBURN

NCEW member Peter Calamai is editorial pages editor of The Ottawa Citizen in Ontario.