July 1, 2009

Our Integrity Is Not for Sale

Dr. Robert Peltier, PE, Editor-in-Chief

I was putting the finishing touches on this month’s editorial when I received an email from a reader who owns a company that serves the power industry. He was very complimentary of an article I recently wrote. "Goes without saying," I was thinking to myself. However, actually saying it goes a long way in my book, and I enjoy hearing from readers — at least most of the time.

Wide-Ranging Reader Responses

I especially appreciate readers who take the time to send me an email about something they learned from reading POWER that helped solve a nagging problem, or about some new insight into the future of the power industry they gained. I also enjoy the sometimes spirited interactions with readers (although the periodic death threats less so). Even messages identifying an error (thankfully, few) or offering the reader’s unique opinions of the power industry are always read and enjoyed. I’ve even had readers ask me to retract an editorial I wrote, although it’s a mystery how I go about disavowing an opinion I still hold. I also freely admit that many of the most critical letters often plant the seeds for future POWER articles.

"First among such ideals is independence... to have no other guides for its opinions and policies but truth and the sound interests of the field it serves."

The second half of this particular reader’s email included a question that I’ve never been asked before: "How much did it cost company X to have that article published in POWER?"

My first reaction to the question isn’t fit to print. The implication is that the POWER editors run a monthly auction for editorial space in the magazine and that the high bidders will find their articles in the next issue. Nothing could be further from the truth. Yet, this inquiry, made in all seriousness, indicates to me that we haven’t done a very good job of explaining our editorial rules of the road.