Five-member board decides editorial opinions

Who is responsible for the thumbs up/thumbs down column? Who decides which way they go? In light of the Providence St. Peter Hospital receiving a thumbs down for infant security I was just curious if these people had any children./grandchildren and how they would feel if one of their offspring was one of the four abducted. -- via e-mail

Opinion Editor Mike Oakland Thumbs up/thumbs down editorials -- like all editorials -- are decided by The Olympian's five-member editorial board: the publisher, executive editor, editorial page editor and two community representatives who serve six-month terms.

This particular thumbs down to Providence St. Peter Hospital was in response to the hospital's decision not to pass along birth information for publication in the newspaper. Administrators cited security concerns. As the editorial noted, there have been no kidnappings in this state related to birth announcements -- and just four cases nationwide since 1983. That's a pretty low risk. Capital Medical Center sees no need to withhold the joyous news of births at that hospital from the community. Neither should St. Pete's.