Many of you clearly care about The Miami Herald. Nearly 175 of you responded thoughtfully to my request for ideas on what content the paper should emphasize in an era of staff cuts. I can't reprint all of your responses, but following are representative excerpts. I hope the writers will understand that I edited their excerpts for space. All letters are being shared in full internally. Let's keep talking.

I have kept a Wall Street Journal article from 2001 about the daily newspaper in Dunn, N.C. The article notes the paper has a penetration rate of 112 percent, versus 53 percent for the average newspaper. The formula for their success was to ``offer loads of down-home news that readers can't get anywhere else.''

The Miami Herald has almost no local content. The paper gets my highest marks for its recent excellent coverage of housing, public transportation and other major issues. I continue to subscribe because of The Herald's investigative journalism. But there has been almost no coverage of Hallandale where I live and work, nor of many other cities in South Florida.

-- Michael Butler, Hallandale Beach

I ask that you try to maintain an emphasis on international affairs. With two wars raging and a multitude of international issues affecting our lives in South Florida, it seems to me as necessary as ever to provide more than local news coverage.

I strongly favor The Herald's news coverage becoming more analytical and explanatory. Facts and data are easy to come by in the information-rich environment in which we live. The challenge is what to do with this information. What does it mean?

-- Joseph F. Patrouch, Miami Beach

I agree with adding a conservative slant. I am a bit left-of-center, liberal on social issues, a bit more conservative on government involvement in people's lives. I want to hear what the other side is saying. If they can make an intelligent argument, I am eager to listen.

What is most important to me is that The Herald survives to blow the whistle, investigate, create a community dialogue. You're the only watchdog left. I would more carefully frame the debate. The typical format is left/right, for/against. I think an editorial board could give some time to providing more than two categories on an issue, and let the public fill in the blanks.

-- Andrew L. Brickman, Ph.D.

I can't imagine the paper without its distinguished columnists. The opinion pages of The Herald are very important for readers like me. I already receive all the local and national news from other news organizations and the Internet, but I find the value of the paper is the opinion section. Further, I am very upset reading the possibility of dismissing the classical-music columnist and at-large cultural critics.

-- Dr. Juliet Hananian, Miami

Well, what's gone wrong is painfully, shamefully, embarrassingly simple: The readership changed and the paper didn't. It still reads as though it's in the Miami of 60 years ago. Latino writers in English are either scarce or inane, and Latino subjects are treated superficially, anthropologically, unsympathetically, or not at all -- never mind that the only edition that's thriving is the Spanish-language one. Hullo? Need any more hints for reform?

-- Juana Bimba

I realize that my website, Business Buzz, is all about covering an old-fashioned beat -- in this case, chambers of commerce meetings. But I actually get out of the office and go to meetings, and talk to a lot of people. I occasionally taunt The Herald's business editor, Lisa Gibbs: ``Come and get me! Assign someone to this beat and knock me off. I'm an easy target. The Herald should be covering these meetings -- they are your advertisers and potential advertisers. I am 65. Take this away from me and let me retire in peace.''

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