Last Monday, we published an op-ed written by a UC Berkeley student who is an undocumented immigrant. As stated in the column’s editor’s note, it is Daily Cal policy not to print unsigned letters or op-eds, unless the writer would feel threatened if his or her identity were revealed.

There was a post last week by Justin Azadivar, who uses the pseudonym Beetle Aurora Drake on the Berkeley blog Beetle Beat, questioning the omission of the writer’s name.

Given the writer’s status and the current contentiousness of the issue being discussed, opinion page editor Andrea Lu and myself decided to withhold the name. Though the submission appeared unsigned in print and online, the Daily Cal contacted the writer several times before publication to understand the reasoning behind the request. Publishing the writer’s name could have exposed the writer or the writer’s family to hate crimes and potentially made them more susceptible to deportation.

It is the hope of the Daily Cal to create a true public forum for our readers. While we abide by our submission policy, we grant a certain amount of leniency to protect writers of letters and op-eds to promote public discussion. We felt the writer’s message was important and timely, and that it would provide readers with a perspective that is not always seen.

We understand the significance of attaching a name for credibility, which is why our paper, like many others, has a “must-sign” policy. But in the cases involving submissions that may be questionable, it is the Daily Cal’s responsibility to ensure the information is accurate. One of the guidelines from The Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics can be applied to this situation: “Always question sources’ motives before promising anonymity. Clarify conditions attached to any promise made in exchange for information. Keep promises.”

On a related note, there was a paper written in 2005 by Bill Reader, an assistant professor at the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University, titled “Current issues regarding letters to the editor.” The paper covers three research articles that explore who submits articles to papers and the impact of current opinion page policies. It’s an interesting site worth checking out.

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