Vance Opperman and William McDonough, staff members for Gerald Sikorski’s 1976 state senate campaign, complained that the publisher manipulated the newspaper’s letters-to-the-editor policy in order to oppose Sikorski’s candidacy and support his opponent.
Michael McKee of St. Paul complained that the paper arbitrarily denied him fair access to its letters-to-the-editor column. He also charged the paper with refusal to print divergent viewpoints on controversial subjects or letters not in sympathy with the editor’s viewpoint.
Senator Mel Hansen complained that the newspaper treated him unfairly when it edited and deleted portions of his letter to the editor without discussing the changes with him before publication. The letter had been solicited by the paper as a means of satisfying a complaint Hansen had over a previous story.
On July 22, 1974 George E. Melink submitted to the Dakota County Tribune an “Open Letter to Representative Bradley G. Pieper.” This letter was written in a response to an “Open Letter to the People of District 53B” by Rep. Pieper which had appeared in the July 18th issue of the Tribune. In Rep. Pieper’s letter, Mr. Melink was accused of “smear, exaggeration, inaccurate statements, and insulting the intelligence of the voters.”
Dr. Robert P. N. Shearin complained that the paper used “oppressive attempts to suppress public opinion and information” when it declined to publish a second letter to the editor from him, and when it later decided not to accept any more letters on the topic.
The paper printed a letter of his, critical of the Thief River Falls City Council, withholding his name.