Opinion desk
The Opinion desk charter
Opinion at The Cipher is a space for argument, not announcement. Editorial board stances are labeled apart from individual student viewpoints, and every column and letter carries its byline and affiliation. Writers are asked to back claims with evidence and to engage fairly with the arguments they dispute.
Official editorial board stance
On current academic developments at the university
The editorial board speaks as one body. Its stance reflects the Cipher's collective judgment after deliberation, and it is labeled as such wherever it appears.— CCIT Editorial Board
Guest and student columns
Individual viewpoints, byline first
Guest column
Arguments that earn their evidence
Columns are judged by how they argue, not how loudly they assert. Each claim should point to a source a reader can check.
A strong opinion makes its evidence visible.— Student columnist, byline on file
Student essay
Disagreement as a campus practice
Essays on campus debate show how disagreement can be argued in good faith, with fair reading of opposing positions.
Fair critique begins with an accurate account of the view being critiqued.— Student essayist, byline on file
Letter to the editor
Responses that stay on the argument
Letters respond to published work and keep their focus on the points raised, with affiliations stated so readers know who is speaking.
Name the argument, then answer it.— Reader letter, byline on file