“Every time a newspaper dies, even a bad one, the country moves a little closer to authoritarianism.”
That quote from Pulitzer Prize–winning author Richard Kluger is just another way of saying that we need each other. That is, the White County News needs its community, and the community needs us.
In a working democracy — in any country with notions of being “free” — this is a necessary partnership. We really need newspapers and news agencies that are free from manipulation, personal agendas, and manufactured narratives.
A newspaper’s first loyalty is to the truth, not to power or personality. Consider Thomas Jefferson’s point of view: “Were it left to me to decide if we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”
Even when the truth hurts, that loyalty includes reporting, editorials (including cartoons), and letters to the editor.
The letters section is the most democratic part of the paper, where people engage openly. Letters should be genuine, signed by the people who write them, not ghostwritten to settle grudges or deceive readers.
Unfortunately, not everyone agrees. Last week someone of minor local influence tried to slip us a self-serving letter while hiding behind another person’s name. The scheme unraveled but the intent was clear: twist a public conversation for some kind of personal gratification.
In an age when dysfunctional elected officials normalize falsehoods on social media and decry anything that ruffles their sensitive feathers as “fake news” or “liberal bias,” newspapers large and small — and communities like ours — must rise above the crud and remain vigilant.
Honest local news is the antidote. And if the definition of a good newspaper is a nation (or community) talking to itself — as another Pulitzer winner, playwright Arthur Miller, said — then let’s make it an honest conversation.