The darkening skies and sickening air that swallowed Detroit earlier this month are more than a nuisance: they’re a five-alarm warning of what’s to come if we continue to fail to act.
Guest Commentary
At Bridge, we believe in listening to voices from all over our state. Got something to say? Contact us and join the conversation (details below)
How to submit a Guest Commentary
What to know:
Bridge welcomes a diversity of voices and perspectives from readers on issues important to Michigan. Guest commentaries reflect the views of the author(s), and are independent of the nonpartisan, fact-driven reporting of Bridge’s newsroom staff.
Commentaries must be the author’s original work and preferably will not have appeared first in other publications. Bridge reserves the right to decline submissions at our discretion.
We reserve the right to edit commentary for grammar, clarity, brevity or to address legal or factual concerns. We may offer editing suggestions, but in the service of making your work more accessible, not to alter your views.
We do not pay for guest commentary.
Here are some guidelines:
- Columns are usually 500-700 words
- They generally focus on a Michigan topic or policy and should avoid ad hominem attacks
- The more direct, distinct and/or intimate your perspective, the more effective your column will be
- The best columns do more than identify problems; they also offer solutions and facts to back them up
- Please include a one- or two-sentence bio, including the writer’s organization or relevant background.
- Authors must show their work, by backing up facts with links to reports or studies
- Bridge does not publish self-promotional columns or candidate endorsements
- Send a good quality, large headshot of the writer(s) as an attachment
- We also ask that, in return for publishing a guest commentary, the author(s) and their organizations generously promote the link to the published column through your Facebook, Twitter and other social or professional networks.
That’s about it. Keep the writing clear, conversational and free of jargon, and sell our smart and receptive readership on the argument you are trying to make.
Who to contact:
Email your submission or idea to guestcommentary@bridgemi.com. Please briefly describe who you are and what you would like to say and put the words “guest commentary” in the email subject line.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Measles outbreaks shouldn’t happen here. Our county got lucky. This time
We had a close call here in southeast Michigan. With vaccine coverage falling, it is only a matter of time before we’re dealing with another outbreak.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Let Michigan voters make democracy work
Our current voting system forces people to either step aside or risk handing elections to candidates that most voters don’t want. The way we vote punishes anyone who doesn’t want to be blamed for ‘splitting the vote.’
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | AI makes it easier to deny reality. Michigan politics are already suffering
Being caught on tape no longer ruins political careers — and policymakers, courts and media companies must act quickly to ensure accountability remains.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Can Michigan learn the right lessons from two child welfare cases?
Confusing poverty with neglect deluges child welfare systems and steals time from finding children in real danger.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Michigan can lead again by making fish advisories easier to use
Michigan has an opportunity to lead — not only in monitoring contaminants, but in helping people confidently use the information, pairing world-class science with communication that respects how people actually live.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Michigan needs immigrants. Court rulings betray ideals and economic reality
New arrivals continue a disproportionate share to Michigan’s economy. Supreme Court decisions on asylum and Temporary Protected Status are not only un-American but growth.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Michigan can’t afford a blanket moratorium on data centers
The answer to a bad process is to improve the process. The answer is not a one-year statewide moratorium that treats every proposed data center the same. A state that wants next-generation investment cannot behave like it is suspicious of it.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Bill would make workforce housing harder to build. Whitmer should veto it
House Bill 6074 is a mistake. Building new housing in Michigan’s lower-income, workforce neighborhoods is already hard. HB 6074 makes it harder. Build-to-rent is not a move away from homeownership. It is the sequence that makes ownership possible again.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Opinion | Treating poverty to prevent preterm births and newborn deaths
Efforts to prevent preterm birth have focused largely on medical interventions delivered during pregnancy. Flint’s experience suggests that addressing the economic conditions surrounding pregnancy may be as important as addressing its biological complications.