White House must recognize the importance of the free press
"Donald Trump has taken that umbrage to a new level, launching a very public campaign to discredit....the media...." Editorial published in the MichiganLive newspaper.
In my opinion, Trump does not value independent journalism and has wrongly created the faux montra of "fake news".
Back 240-some years ago, it was printing presses and anonymous pamphlets that inspired the American Revolution. Freedom of the press was enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.
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Congress shall make no law....abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press |
Thomas Jefferson once wrote if he had to choose between "a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
To be sure, Jefferson and almost every U.S. president has his tussles with the media.
But the entire institution. The cries of "fake news" about any less-than-flattering story. Leading jeers against journalists at his rallies. The many, many tweets.
Among his most recent broadsides: Journalists are "enemies of the people" who are "very sick & dangerous."*
And Trump isn't even subtle about his motives.
"You know why I do it?" Trump reportedly told CBS journalist Leslie Stahl about his "fake news" rhetoric. "I do it to discredit you all and demean you all so when you write negative stories about me, no one will believe you."
Every American should find this deeply, deeply troubling.
Do we really want a country where public institutions go unchecked? Where the press is cowed and intimidated?
Countries like that exist, of course. And they aren't democracies.
The fact is, we can't sustain a democracy without a free and independent press.
We aren't the enemy of the people. We are the people.
When we ask questions, we are the voice of a public wanting explanations. When we file a Freedom of Information Act , it's on behalf of our readers. It's everyday people we think about as we seek out the truth; track down both sides of the story; hold public officials accountable; and shed light on decisions made behind closed doors.
We represent those seeking to speak truth to power.
As the old saying says, power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely. The press is an essential element in an informed public, which is a critical check on powerful individuals and institutions alike.
That's true whether it's covering a local school board meeting, reporting on the state Legislature or bird-dogging events in Washington.
Time and time again in Michigan, we've seen the power of the relationship between the press and the public.
Without that relationship, Flint might still be drinking water from the Flint River, with no one the wiser. Larry Nassar likely would still be seeing patients at Michigan State University. Nobody would know enough to care about Enbridge's Line 5 or PFAS contamination.
Our state has had its own experience with politicians demonizing the media to distract from their own shortcomings.
Recall Kwame Kilpatrick, the former Detroit mayor with a fervently loyal fan base. It was the media that uncovered Kilpatrick's lies, his corruption, his abuse of power and taxpayer dollars, his perjury in a court case that cost Detroit millions of dollars.
Remember how Kilpatrick said the media was out to get him?
To be sure, Jefferson and almost every U.S. president has his tussles with the media.
But the entire institution. The cries of "fake news" about any less-than-flattering story. Leading jeers against journalists at his rallies. The many, many tweets.
Among his most recent broadsides: Journalists are "enemies of the people" who are "very sick & dangerous."*
And Trump isn't even subtle about his motives.
"You know why I do it?" Trump reportedly told CBS journalist Leslie Stahl about his "fake news" rhetoric. "I do it to discredit you all and demean you all so when you write negative stories about me, no one will believe you."
Every American should find this deeply, deeply troubling.
Do we really want a country where public institutions go unchecked? Where the press is cowed and intimidated?
Countries like that exist, of course. And they aren't democracies.
The fact is, we can't sustain a democracy without a free and independent press.
We aren't the enemy of the people. We are the people.
When we ask questions, we are the voice of a public wanting explanations. When we file a Freedom of Information Act , it's on behalf of our readers. It's everyday people we think about as we seek out the truth; track down both sides of the story; hold public officials accountable; and shed light on decisions made behind closed doors.
We represent those seeking to speak truth to power.
As the old saying says, power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely. The press is an essential element in an informed public, which is a critical check on powerful individuals and institutions alike.
That's true whether it's covering a local school board meeting, reporting on the state Legislature or bird-dogging events in Washington.
Time and time again in Michigan, we've seen the power of the relationship between the press and the public.
Without that relationship, Flint might still be drinking water from the Flint River, with no one the wiser. Larry Nassar likely would still be seeing patients at Michigan State University. Nobody would know enough to care about Enbridge's Line 5 or PFAS contamination.
Our state has had its own experience with politicians demonizing the media to distract from their own shortcomings.
Recall Kwame Kilpatrick, the former Detroit mayor with a fervently loyal fan base. It was the media that uncovered Kilpatrick's lies, his corruption, his abuse of power and taxpayer dollars, his perjury in a court case that cost Detroit millions of dollars.
Remember how Kilpatrick said the media was out to get him?
It's the favorite refrain of politicians when the facts were not on their side.
*Not True!* The press as enemy of the people? Hardly.
If you value democracy, you can't muzzle the watchdogs.
MLive Media Group is joining newspapers across the country to address attacks against a free and independent press.
*Not True!* The press as enemy of the people? Hardly.
If you value democracy, you can't muzzle the watchdogs.
MLive Media Group is joining newspapers across the country to address attacks against a free and independent press.
The effort was started by the Boston Globe to reiterate the importance of the press as the watchdogs for the American people.
Labels: Boston Globe, Committee to Protect Journalists, Donald Trump, First Amendment, Michigan Live, Thomas Jefferson
posted by Juliana L'Heureux | 6:58 AM
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