op-ed page Written by Kimberly Meltzer Contributor to SAGE Publications's The SAGE Encyclopedia of Journalism (2022) whose work appears in Britannica as part of a joint publishing agreement with SAGE. Kimberly Meltzer Fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors Last updated Apr. 23, 2026 •History An op-ed is an essay published by a news outlet, either in print or online, that expresses the author’s viewpoint. In a print newspaper, such opinion pieces generally appear on the op-ed page. The term op-ed is an abbreviation of “opposite editorial,” which comes from the tradition of newspapers placing opinion material on the page opposite the editorial page. In a broadsheet newspaper, the editorial section is typically published on one or two pages of...

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