Supporting a free press is, well, patriotic
The cookouts are over, the red, white and blue decorations are coming off the patios and tables and are being prepared for storage to await July 4, 2024.
We’ve watched the parades and marveled at the fireworks. Independence Day is now in the rearview mirror, but what about patriotism and what it means for Americans in mid-2023?
Perhaps it’s why I’m in this business, but the free press and patriotism have always had a symbiotic relationship for me. The wars that our soldiers risk their lives to win are often over the very ideals and issues that play out every day in the pages of newspapers large and small: political parties arguing over the issues and programs they want their nominees to support, town aldermen deciding whether citizens should be able to consume alcohol while walking around town, deciding how much we should spend on trying to determine where future floods might occur and how to prevent them (all issues from articles that appeared in our paper and on our website in the last week).
These are seemingly mundane matters, true. But in many countries, it’s not the citizens who make these decisions. In many countries, you criticize your leaders, and you go to jail; you ask for more freedoms, and you’re totally ignored; if the press reports on these matters, it’s shut down and editors or reporters are imprisoned. The “press” in many countries is just a megaphone for despots who murder their own people without regret.
I spent the first 10 years of my life as the third son of an enlisted Navy man, and as a child I believed the U.S. infallible. For three years we were stationed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in the late 1960s. The U.S. base in Guantanamo is on a large bay, but there is also a fenced portion separating it from Cuba’s population with land mines. Every now and then a Cuban would show up on the base seeking asylum. Some of these swam over, often through shark-infested waters; some ventured through minefields hoping to escape repression. Some didn’t make it, losing their lives in the attempt.
And so here I was, in elementary school, hearing stories from my mom and dad and the other service men talking about these people who risked their lives to taste the freedom that we often take for granted. It made quite the impression.
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I was reading Editor and Publisher – a journalism trade publication — over the weekend. The publisher of that magazine is Mike Blinder, and he says his favorite founding father is Benjamin Franklin: “If asked who my ‘BFF’ is (Best Founding Father), I would respond, ‘Hands down, Benjamin Franklin,’ for several reasons. First, he literally invented the concept of free speech and an ‘unfettered press,’ starting as a teenage apprentice offering commentary as the middle-aged widow ‘Mrs. Silence Dogood.’ Then he later regularly practiced these rights through his reporting as the publisher of the Pennsylvania Gazette.”
From Ben Franklin’s days until now, the free press is still doing noble work in this country. I witness Smoky Mountain News’ reporters do it regularly, and I subscribe to every print paper in this region and visit most of the online news sites and can attest to the fact that the courageous journalism is happening every day continues in Western North Carolina.
Supporting a free press is, to me, patriotic. Without an independent press, our country would not have become the symbol of freedom that still inspires many around the world. It’s part of our American identity, this notion that we will argue and fight over our ideological viewpoints, and that we are free to do so.
At one time, newspapers may have been the most popular method of advertising one’s business to potential customers. Now, we provide one of many marketing options, and the business model is changing dramatically. Many newspapers are closing their print and online editions, and it’s estimated that about 70 million Americans — nearly 22 percent of the population — live in news deserts that have no print or online journalists who cover local government. It doesn’t take much imagination to think that those communities may not be very responsive to taxpayers’ wishes.
This week, The Smoky Mountain News will celebrate its 24th anniversary. It’s been quite a ride, one that’s witnessed dramatic changes to our business model while we’ve still maintained a strong investment in both community news and investigative journalism. I want to thank our readers, our advertisers, and the donors who’ve made contributions to help us continue our work.
One of our freelance writers signs off on his emails with the phrase “Write on.” And we will, all in hopes of making this place we call home a better place to live.
(Scott McLeod can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)
