Parrot Time Magazine

If you have read a variety of magazines over the years, you will probably have noticed that the rules of formatting are very relaxed. In other words, there is little from one magazine to the next that seems familiar because they all have their own choices of layout, colours, graphics, etc.

In fact, there are probably only about two things which are common to most magazines. First, almost everyone has some kind of table of contents or index to help you find the sections you want more easily.

The other item is the "Letter from the Editor", which is a short, normally less than half a page, opinion piece at the start of the magazine. As you may have guessed, it is written most of the time by the Editor in Chief.

I have tried many times to research the reason for this commentary. I can find no historical reason for it, nor even a basic explanation of its purpose. It seems to be one of those universally accepted items that no one questions.

So I came up with my own explanation.

Now, the main job of the Editor is to keep track of everything that goes into each issue. They have the final word on what gets allowed, the formatting, etc. At the end of it all, this is basically a Wizard of Oz setup, a "don't look at the man behind the curtain", for the all-powerful Editor is a figure meant not to be seen, but to have their work seen in everything.

Facing the prospect of never having their voices heard unfiltered, the Editors created the Letter from the Editor, as their personal sounding board, in which they can say whatever is on their mind.

So, like the position of Editor itself is fixed, so is this writing outlet for them. being everywhere for no reason.

Erik Zidowecki
ERIK ZIDOWECKI
EDITOR IN CHIEF