By Allen E. Barr, Stevensville
The media is claiming that there is an attack on the free press. The importance of a free press is beyond question. James Madison said, “The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.” The founders understood the dangers that were represented by a powerful central government. To balance and rein in that power they established a free press through the First Amendment. This free press was to act as the people’s watchdog over the government.
With a free press the founders believed that the concept of limited self-government could sustained and that this free press would help protect the unalienable rights of the people.
However, for some time now the people that make up the press have bought into the political ideology of the Democratic Party, socialism. By doing this, their objectivity has been lost and without objectivity they cannot perform the role that the founders had envisioned for a free press. Socialism creates a large powerful central government and the people are forced to pay to fund this beast with little or no return on their investment. Under Socialism there are no unalienable rights. The rights, if any, come from government. In other words, they come from other people as Madison warned in the above quote. As the people in the press continue their move to the left, can the people of this nation continue to remain free?
If we change just one thing in Madison’s quote it would read: The essence of the press is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.
Maybe the founders should have created a watchdog to watch the watchdog.