COMMENTARY: We hear it two or three times a week. The press is the enemy of the people. Sometimes it comes in the form of ad hominem, horrible people. It is unrelenting. Only one news outlet seems to be exempt. Mostly we hear it in Tweets, but sometimes to the faces of the men and women who have dedicated their lives to informing and protecting the rest of us.
Courtesy photo
Claudia Anderson
Don’t believe what you see or read. “Only I have the truth” seems to be the underlying message.
The First Amendment reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Why, in an amendment that was conceived of as protecting the rights of citizens to participate in the governance of their country, would a specific industry be mentioned? Because it was understood that without information the citizens would not have the tools to properly participate.
This set up a tension between the government and the press. No one likes to be criticized, and it is far easier to accomplished one’s agenda without the glaring light of publicity.
I suspect that is part of what the Framers had in mind: that knowing they could not pressure the press, they would conduct themselves in a way that would not cause an uproar if it were widely known. That doesn’t always happen, but with a free press it almost always comes to light.
The press, in all its forms, from paper and ink, to signals in the air or over fiber, to bits and bytes has one of the most sacred duties in a republic, to keep the citizens informed. This does not mean it should hew to a party line. Nor should it fail to cover certain topics because some would rather avoid the issues.
It is, to use a cliché, there to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
We need the press, both to provide facts and, yes, to share opposing viewpoints. Only by having access to both can citizens make informed decisions. It is the very bedrock of freedom.
The press is not the enemy of the people. It is the very institution that keeps us strong as a nation.
Now is the time to stop vilifying the press. It must come from the top.
Claudia Anderson of Farmington is a past Democratic Party county officer and member of the party’s State Central Committee. She has been active in several political campaigns. Today she follows politics avidly as a concerned citizen. She has been proudly voting since 1972. Agree with her opinion? Disagree? We welcome your views. Learn about submitting your own commentary here.