An open letter is a public letter addressed to a large group or single person. It can be used to address unknown individuals or explain the author’s point of view. They can appear in various formats and are used to inform a wider audience about concerns or issues. Famous examples include Pauline epistles, J’Accuse! and Bill Gates’ Open Letter to Hobbyists.
An open letter is the opposite of a private letter. It is made available to the public in order to make more people aware of its content. Such a letter may be addressed to a large group of people, such as an open letter to readers of a publication, or it may have a single addressee, such as the President of the United States, whom the author of the letter wishes to address in a public forum. .
This type of communication can be used to address a single person whose identity the writer does not know, as in the sketch Kids in the Hall where Bruce McCullough reads an open letter to “the boy who stole my bicycle wheel ”. In this case, the open letter is an ideal format because the wider audience gives the writer a chance to meet the intended recipient. Alternatively, it may have no explicit addressee, but may simply be used to explain the author’s point of view or intentions to anyone interested.
An open letter could appear anywhere you’d expect to see a public message. Some popular forums include blogs, web forums, magazines, and brochures. Many corporate websites contain open letters explaining the company’s philosophy or policies. They can also be read aloud or impromptu on television or radio, as well as on stage – or in any public area, for that matter.
Many people find that an open letter can be the perfect way to inform a wider audience about their concerns or to open a dialogue about issues they are interested in. The more people such a letter can reach, the more influence it can have, so consider how many people will have access to the media you choose.
Some famous open letters throughout history include the New Testament Pauline epistles, J’Accuse! by Emile Zola and Bill Gates’ Open Letter to Hobbyists.
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