Censorship Is Not the Answer 630.5
In the early days of our democracy, newspapers played a critical role in electing officials, making and breaking reputations, and forming public opinion. Publishers had no hesitation drenching their papers with their political views or making vicious personal attacks on public figures they disliked or disagreed with.
John Adams’s Federalist-dominated Congress became so angry about attacks undermining its policies that it passed the Sedition Act in 1798, making it treason to publish “any false, scandalous, and malicious writing” about the government. Under this law, 25 men, most of them editors of newspapers supporting Thomas Jefferson, were arrested and their newspapers were shut down.
When Jefferson came into office, he repealed the laws, but the Federalist newspapers were no less vicious or relentless in their criticism of him than the other newspapers had been of Adams. Still, Jefferson steadfastly insisted that a free press was the single-most important safeguard of liberty.
By any imaginable standard, today’s newspapers (and other forms of news media) are more professional, fair, and responsible than those that reported on the founding of our nation. Yet they’re far from perfect, and many people so dislike and/or distrust the news media that they’re ready to constrain it rather than demand improvements. In a 2005 survey, more than one in five Americans said they favored allowing the government to censor the press. You’ve got to have a lot of trust in government to believe that would make things better.
Our nation needs aggressive, fearless, and objective news reporting. It’s fair and proper for reporters to identify deficiencies and express dismay, but at some point we have to devote greater energy to diagnosing and fixing the problems. Censorship isn’t the answer.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
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Comments
We need honest and trustworthy news reporters like Walter Cronkite. Where are they? Today they just read from the teleprompter and others are totally biased in their presentation.
Posted by: Joan Klaric | August 7, 2009 8:42 AM
With what is currently happening in our country as far as news media and reporting, we all need to be concerned. Many say if I disappear during these four years, you know why? When people are censored, the person responsible for the censoring has something to hide.
When you censor information and the truth is revealed, it's even worse. For example, if the S.C governor would have made a press conference stating "My wife and I are legally separated and I have a personal friend," it would have been no big deal.
Posted by: Lisa | August 8, 2009 10:22 PM
"Our nation needs aggressive, fearless, and objective news reporting." That would be great - BUT- I've been involved with many stories that made it to the press. Having a first-hand account of the incidents, I then read the story the next day in the newspaper and think there must have been another incident because there is nothing recognizable as truth or actual facts in the story the paper prints.
Also, if you don't think the media gets officials elected, I suggest you reexamine the last presidential race. The media was extremely biased. The reason why we all liked Walter Cronkite is we could believe what he told us - the end of an era.
Posted by: Daniel | August 10, 2009 6:51 AM
It is difficult in this day and age to find any media organizations that do not pre-censor the news. They all worry about their advertisers’ reactions to stories. Do you think we will ever see natural cancer cures reported on the evening news when pharmaceutical companies provide the bulk of the revenue for most networks? We have many good reporters. What we are lacking is enough good media executives to allow them to disseminate the truth instead of filtered stories. In America at this point in time I fear Big Business more than I fear the government when it comes to censorship. Not that we shouldn’t fear Uncle Sam, since most of our elected officials have been bought by corporate interests.
BTW: There has been media bias in EVERY election since Washington left office. I’m curious why so many people think this last election was any different. If anyone thinks media bias didn’t shape the Bush-Gore or Kennedy-Nixon elections, they need to study a little harder. Media bias has made or broken Presidents and kings, wars and truces, legislation and verdicts, and Cabinet and court appointments throughout recorded history. Isn’t it time people stopped whining? The election is over; Obama is EVERYONE’S President. Wouldn’t good character dictate that we all get behind the electorate and try to govern this nation as best as possible? It’s amazing that everyone can see a poor loser on the athletic field but has difficulty identifying one in the political arena.
Posted by: Mr T | August 11, 2009 5:19 PM