A free press must be bold to be useful: The American example

If anything has become blatantly visible since Mr. Donald Trump’s presidential campaign till now, it’s that he has no sign of qualms carrying on his enmity with the press. He hardly went a day without banishing the press as what he described as “dishonest” and “disgusting” following his team across the country. So much so, that he even openly threatened to introduce new libel laws so to make it easier to sue news organizations that published or broadcasted stories ‘he believed were false’. First of all, who is he to verify and distinguish between true and false about media and press materials? And second, why should a free press in a democracy agree to publish ‘what the president believes to be true’.

This is as much an objectionable offence to directly attack press freedom as much as his brainless display of ignorance on freedom of speech and media. When he vehemently objected about the media reports on low turnout on his swearing-in ceremony to be ‘false reporting’ it wasn’t only the American media, but millions across the globe who were watching the event in TV. Millions had watched that in reality the attendance was far lower than all previous swearing-in ceremonies. Yet he still believes that it wasn’t true. His recent dispute over a news report of the Washington Post that he had hung up on the Australian PM has drawn global attention. As of late, he called the exchange “very civil” in a tweet, adding that “fake news” circulated in the media has misinterpreted details of the heated exchange.

His marked disagreements between his own believing and news reports have also divided news audiences at home and abroad. His endless tweeting over crucial and sensitive issues has not only hoodwinking the public, but in fact he is visibly playing with the trustworthiness of a free press and media.

The fact however, Americans enjoy freedom of the press under the First Amendment to the Constitution. Press and media (print, electronic and online) are the most important medium of expressing opinion of the people in a democratic country that justifies one’s individual right to speech and expression and to change this fundamental right in one’s favour is not only undemocratic but unconstitutional too.

The constitution guarantees of a free press and it is the boldness of the journalist to defend the constitutional pledge in spite of the attacking rhetoric and direct threat from the most powerful man in America and in the world. Mr. Trump cannot act like the powerful authoritarian Mr. Putin in suppressing the freedom of speech.