My recent column about changes planned for 2004 drew a lot of comment and some questions.

"It would be nice if newspapers [came] without WRINKLES obscuring the text and without printers' INK SMUDGING my clothing," wrote one reader.

It's true that readers have seen many more wrinkles and tears in The News & Observer in recent months. We don't like them any more than you do. We have brought in consultants to suggest solutions, and our production staff hopes to cut down on the wrinkling in the next couple of months.

Danny Collins, vice president for production, says the problems occur as the paper is folded (the good kind of folding, not the wrinkling.)

Regarding smudges, The N&O has for years used an ink that has little or no ruboff.

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A number of responses related to the editorial page and letters to the editor. This is an area of confusion I'm glad to clear up. I do not oversee opinion pages or letters to the editor. This newspaper thinks it best to separate news coverage from the paper's editorial positions. I learn about those positions when I read them in the newspaper, just as you do. Steve Ford is editorial page editor; his e-mail address is sford@newsobserver.com.

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"Find ways to get historical and anticipated context into stories," wrote Herbert Reichlin of Raleigh. "Too many times I read glib statements that show the writer has never read a book or taken a course on the subject."

We work to offer such context within stories. Additionally, longtime readers have probably noticed more efforts to provide information that sums up history, geography, political context and so forth. This information is usually boxed along with maps, Web references or other information that helps provide context and detail.

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The prospect of changes in arts and business coverage brought cheers from several readers but caution from others who enjoy what The N&O offers now. Don't break what works, they pleaded.

We promise that changes will build on the strengths of What's Up, A&E, daily Business, Work & Money, Connect and other favorite sections.

Our television book, Channels, also is up for review. We're considering changing the day of distribution from Saturday to Sunday and moving to a smaller format similar to other TV magazines. More on that soon.

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Several readers took me to task for listing improvements without saying how important coverage of government, politics and policy is to The N&O's core mission. I did emphasize those core strengths but also said that the column was focusing on change.

As the state capital paper, and by long tradition, The N&O pushes hard on public interest journalism.

That won't change, this year or any other.