Democracy dies when speech and the press are suppressed

Did you know that the television you watch and the radio to which you listen came about because of successful experiments conducted on our Outer Banks in 1902? A group of North Carolina Broadcasters met at Elon University to discuss how to preserve that history and better inform North Carolinians.

It was no happenstance they convened at Elon. This university has one of the most modern schools of communications and journalism in the South. 1 in 5 Elon students are enrolled in the school. The broadcasters toured the state-of-the art facilities, witnessed hands-on studios and learning labs, met students and professors, and learned about techniques employed to train the next generation of journalists, broadcasters, media and marketing professionals.

The importance for this training was underscored because that same day ABC television announced it was taking Jimmy Kimmel off the air because he made comments about Charlie Kirk and the man accused of shooting him. Conservatives were outraged, prompting remarks from the president and even the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, who hinted at revoking ABC television licenses over the remarks.

You might remember that same ABC paid Donald Trump $15 million dollars because George Stephanopoulos said on-air that Trump had been found civilly liable for raping E. Jean Carroll. Never mind that it was true, Trump found it offensive. ABC paid rather than fight. They aren’t alone.

The Washington Post, whose motto is “Democracy Dies in Darkness,” revamped their editorial policy because owner Jeff Bezos was afraid the paper’s opinions might offend Trump and interrupt his Amazon and space dealings. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was abolished because conservatives claimed PBS and NPR programming was too liberal. CBS paid $16 million over a “60 Minutes” interview MAGA claimed was unfairly edited to favor Kamala Harris. Trump kicked The Associated Press out of the White House press room because he said their reporting was unfair to him. And Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is requiring reporters to sign a pledge that they won’t publish any stories he hasn’t authorized.

Trump and his followers are attempting to become the editors-in-chief, censoring what we read and hear; an overt acknowledgment to the power of the media to persuade people. Throughout our history we have counted on investigative journalism, like on Watergate, to uncover corruption and abuses of power. We have depended on the “fourth estate” to help us make informed decisions in voting and conducting our lives. And this same media has presented us with various opinions on issues, prompting debate on the issues of the day.

This war on journalism has reporters, editors and owners scared. Conversations are being held in newsrooms across our state regarding liable and slander rules, the need for factual reporting, caution for inserting opinions in news pieces and even the need for approval before publishing or broadcasting controversial or highly partisan stories.

We have been so repeatedly and pointedly told that reporters and news outlets are “fake news” that large numbers of us accept it as fact. Gallup just reported that only 17 percent have a lot or great deal of trust in newspapers and just 11 percent have that trust in television news. Is that distrust justified? No. But it is what partisan politicians want to make us believe.

As one who has spent his life in the media world let me state news people and sources are certainly not perfect. Everyone has biases and reporters cannot help but bring them into some of their reporting. But facts rule and biased reporting is the exception. We have been blessed by honorable and responsible reporters who struggle to get the facts right. Without Walter Cronkite we might still be fighting in Viet Nam.

I wonder how North Carolina media legends like Edward R. Murrow, Charles Kuralt, David Brinkley, NPR’s Carl Kasell, Howard Cosell, David Gergen, Vermont Royster (Wall Street Journal), Tom Wicker, Harry Golden and a host of others would react to today’s intimidation, bullying and lawsuits. They must be turning in their graves as they witness media companies succumbing to threats. Thank God The New York Times, threatened with a $15 million defamation lawsuit from Trump, went to court and won. The judge said a lawsuit wasn’t “a forum for rage against an adversary.”

As we prepare to observe of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration that proclaimed our “unalienable” rights and freedoms, let us remember that none are more important than freedom of speech and freedom of the press guaranteed in Article 1 of our Constitution.

Thomas Jefferson was reputed to have said, “An informed electorate is the cornerstone of a democracy.” Our nation depends on current and future communicators, like those at Elon and other institutions of higher learning, to preserve and defend those rights. We cannot allow them to become “fake” rights.

If the rights of free speech and a free press are violated, what happens next?

Tom Campbell is a Hall of Fame North Carolina broadcaster and columnist who has covered North Carolina public policy issues since 1965.  Contact him at tomcamp@ncspin.com