Introducing Strib Voices: Minnesota’s most dynamic conversation

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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When you think about some of the greatest conversations you’ve ever had, I’d venture to guess they involved talking with someone who had a new or different perspective that taught you something. There’s nothing like a well-formed point of view to make us look at our world a little differently. That’s something our founders understood acutely when they wrote the First Amendment to our Constitution, the right to free speech.

Here in Minnesota, the Star Tribune has long provided a platform for different voices to be heard. That’s why, at a time when many media organizations are cutting back or shying away from opinion journalism, we’re going in a very different direction.

We’re leaning into amplifying more voices. A lot more voices.

We believe that now more than ever, lifting up the voices that reflect our state, in all its complexities, will increase understanding and create the most dynamic conversation that’s ever existed about this place we all call home.

Our new platform is called Strib Voices, and it encompasses all of the opinion journalism of the Star Tribune, as well as a lot more commentary from people across Minnesota. Our goal is to make Strib Voices the best watercooler for local conversation in the country.

To jump-start our efforts on Strib Voices, we’re thrilled to welcome 11 new contributing columnists to the platform. We intentionally sought out these commentators, who come from all walks of life, because they each have something special to share about Minnesota. And they’re not afraid to be counterintuitive, controversial and thought-provoking.

Some of the names you might recognize, and others you may be seeing for the first time. But all of them will make you think. These new voices include a convincing conservative thinker, a sportswriter turned pastor, a cannabis expert, a nationally recognized online influencer and former teacher, a celebrity chef, and many more folks we can’t wait for you to read.

You can learn more about all of them in a column from Kavita Kumar, our community engagement director. We’ll publish their work regularly, and add to this list as we grow.

In addition to these contributing columnists, we’re seeking opinions from people across our state. Kavita and our team are already reaching out across Minnesota to find new voices on all major topics of the day. If you have an idea for commentary, please reach out to her at kavita.kumar@startribune.com.

One of the time-honored traditions of opinion pages is to have an editorial board that speaks on behalf of the institution. It’s a powerful tool for commentary, and we believe it’s an important contribution to the state.

We also think it needs a reboot for a modern era of media.

That’s why, moving forward, we’ll use the collective voice of the Editorial Board in the moments when it’s most needed. Rather than write a daily editorial, we’ll publish one when we feel our collective voice is both unified and constructive. Sometimes you’ll see those editorials signed by the person who wrote them, on behalf of the board. It’s all part of helping you get to know us better.

That also means that our team of talented editorial writers, which will continue to evolve, will lean into their own voices to offer commentary on a wide variety of important issues. They’ll regularly offer researched opinions under their own bylines. We want Minnesota to get to know our editorial writers as they examine and offer commentary and judgment on issues that matter to us all.

This election season, we’re going to try something different in Strib Voices: Rather than issue candidate or ballot endorsements, we’re going to evaluate the key issues relevant to the most important contests, and offer readers a studied perspective on how they might view them at the ballot box. We’ll also offer the candidates from each party in every major race in Minnesota the chance to make their own arguments for why they deserve your vote.

Stepping away from endorsements and trying this new approach is something we’re excited about. By focusing on the issues, rather than telling people how they should vote, we hope to use the tools of opinion journalism in more empowering ways that add value to your voting experience — rather than reducing our analysis to a binary recommendation.

It’s an experiment — let’s see how it goes!

We’ll succeed in making Strib Voices the most dynamic watercooler for local conversation in the country only if we’re listening to you. Good opinion journalism, and good commentary, are just like great conversations — you have to listen, and you have to talk. Great commentary makes you think about your community in a new way and lets you try on new thinking if for no other reason than to understand perspectives that differ from your own.

In an age of polarization, we think that conversation can happen in a way that respects the listener, bringing you along with an argument without making you feel it’s the only way a sane person can think. You’ll see that tone come through in our refreshed report.

Minnesota, we believe, is the perfect place for an expanded focus on opinion journalism. This has long been a state deeply committed to political discourse, civic engagement and unconventional thinking.

We think the state’s largest media outlet has a responsibility to advance that tradition in our next chapter. Our new Strib Voices platform is for you. Let’s start a new conversation.

Phil Morris is the Star Tribune’s opinion editor.