Op-ed

An op-ed (originally short for "opposite the editorial page" though sometimes interpreted as "opinion editorial") is a piece typically published by newspapers, magazines, and the like which expresses the opinions of a named author usually not affiliated with the publication's editorial board. Op-eds are different from both editorials (opinion pieces submitted by editorial board members) and letters to the editor (opinion pieces submitted by readers).

Origin

Although standard editorial pages have been printed by newspapers for many centuries, the direct ancestor to the modern op-ed page was created in 1921 by Herbert Bayard Swope of The New York Evening World. When he took over as editor in 1920, he realized that the page opposite the editorials was "a catchall for book reviews, society boilerplate, and obituaries". He is quoted as writing:

But Swope included only opinions by employees of his newspaper, leaving the "modern" op-ed page to be developed in 1970 under the direction of New York Times editor, John B. Oakes. The first op-ed page of The New York Times appeared on 21 September 1970.