It's often said that journalists and editors are out of touch with their readers. The stories that seem great to a journalist make regular readers turn the page. If the newsroom is to learn what readers really want, it will have to start listening.

Online is a two-way medium. Communication by e-mail is built in; it's natural, it's fast and it's easy.

But two-way communication means more than giving readers an e-mail address where they can send their comments. Who is reading that e-mail that comes in? Is it an intern, or a clerk, or someone else who has no authority? Are the top writers and editors receiving -- and reading -- the readers' comments about their work? And what's more important: Are they paying attention?

Much of the e-mail received by large online publications today falls through the cracks. Everyone is getting too much e-mail. But this is a problem that needs a solution, not one that should be ignored. Those readers are telling you what they like, what they don't like, and what they want. You should be listening.

Commit People and Time

The first part of the solution is to make sure that you have enough e-mail addresses to handle different kinds of responses, such as e-mail to the print news editors, to the online staff, to the subscription department. Do whatever you can to make sure the e-mail is going to someone who will be able to respond appropriately. The San Jose Mercury News sets a good example.

The second requirement is to give qualified staff members the time they need to read and respond to e-mail. Don't assume that a busy staff will be able to squeeze in a few minutes for e-mail. You need to emphasize its importance and promote its use.

Even when all you can say is "Sorry, I can't help you," users react favorably to a personal reply. It takes only a few seconds to dash off a response like that, but the user will appreciate it. The alternative is disappointment, and a suspicion that you don't care about your readers.

The Detroit News prints a sampling of e-mail received each day, with replies.

Readers would like to be able to send e-mail directly to everyone who works on the print publication, but some reporters and editors will not want to participate. It's not a good idea to force them. The amount of e-mail sent to some staff members -- such as a controversial columnist -- maybe come too much for one person to handle. But there are acceptable ways around these problems.

Get in Touch with Readers

The best policy is to promote e-mail to the newsroom staff as a great way to get to know the users -- the newspaper's audience. Make sure the readers understand that not all reporters wish to have e-mail, that having an e-mail address is voluntary. Give readers an alternate route to respond to particular articles or columns.The Seattle Times handles this well.

If one columnist is getting too much mail, let an assistant screen it and pass on the most interesting messages. Or encourage that columnist to take part in an online discussion.

Public discussion forums provide an excellent way to get feedback from readers and respond to them efficiently. In this format, unlike e-mail, readers' messages and the replies from your staff are posted for everyone to read. This lets the readers see that you really are serious about having a two-way dialogue; they can clearly see that someone is paying attention to what they have to say, even though not every message will receive a comment. Since many readers will write similar messages, a columnist can respond once, and everyone can read the response. It's also a fantastic way for a columnist to get ideas.

The Chicago Tribune andThe Washington Post have a number of discussion forums.

Automatic replies, which are like form letters in response to e-mail, are no substitute for this kind of interaction. They often do more harm than good. In some circumstances they are the perfect response -- if you want to see how many people will write to request certain information, such as the rules for a contest. The thing to avoid is having a personal e-mail address send back a form reply.

Many newspapers promote their online editions as a "supplement" to the printed edition. With an emphasis on this kind of two-way communication with readers, that could be true. Everything learned from the online users can be of great benefit to the newsroom as well as to the online staff. The challenge is to demonstrate that to the newsroom -- and to the accountants.