By Barbra De La Hoya
Contributing Writer
When the highest position in the U.S. is held by a man who continues to blatantly attack the press calling it fake news and the enemy of the people, we should be concerned.
The Founding Fathers knew how important freedom of speech was when they incorporated it in the First Amendment, not the second or the fifth. It is, and always will be, No. 1. So, why does the president disregard it?
We must ask ourselves why President Donald Trump considers the press the enemy. Why would the press knowingly report false news to the American public.
Before anything is ever published or reported on, editors make sure all the facts are accurate and all sources are verified. That’s the beauty of the free press.
Real news takes effort. Writers and reporters research their topics. They work hard because they believe the public has the right to be informed.
NPR presidential historian Michael Beschloss said: “Trump is far from the first president to grouse about the way the press covers him. What’s different is that Trump doesn’t seem to share his predecessors’ appreciation of the necessity of a free press as contemplated by the country’s founders.”
This is the information era. Fake or not, information is constantly at our fingertips. But we have to be careful with the information we use to shape our ideals and beliefs. Wynne Davis, an NPR reporter, wrote a list we can check to make sure our news sources are credible.
First, always check the domain and URL. Davis also suggests people check the about page of a website. “If it’s melodramatic and seems overblown, you should be skeptical,” she wrote.
Another one of Davis’ suggestions is something we already do when viewing videos online – check the comments to see what others are saying about the story. If it’s fake, someone else has probably already called it out.
Jason Schwartz, a Politico reporter said, “Since Trump took office, foreign leaders have used ‘fake news’ to justify suppressing speech they don’t like.” It is up to us to hold those in a higher position accountable for their words and actions.
That’s what the press is for.
