Salt Lake Community College

COMM 1500

Section 400

Professor Bingham

Freedom of Press
 When it comes to conversing, freedom is a tricky subject to discuss. There are so many
opinions on whether we are actually free. Most of the chatter is about whether our media is
actually free. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, freedom of speech is defined as,
“the right of newspapers, magazines, etc., to report the news without being controlled by the
government.” As someone who wants to go into broadcast journalism, I am quite curious about
how I will be censored when it is my time on the air. I fear that people outside the media industry
will not see me as a professional journalist due to a very common misconception. People have
started to view the media as a cesspool of lying individuals that will anything to make a quick
dollar. This essay will explore why there really isn’t freedom of the press and why to fix it. We
must enforce freedom of the press because it was pivotal to the creation of the United States,
allows others to express how they feel and can enact real change.

In order to show why we must protect freedom of the press, we must show how it got this
way. In a TED Talk, Trevor Timm, co-founder and the executive director of the Freedom of the
Press Foundation, showed how during the American Revolution pamphlets, newspapers and
speeches were made to show opposition toward the British government. According to the
Chicago Tribune, the concept of freedom of the press was introduced on August 1735 when John
Peter Zenger, a publisher for the New York Weekly Journal, was released from charges made by
the government. They believed that what he said was a purposeful attack on the British
government. In the following years, the Founding Fathers decided to protect this right. Protecting
what these people wanted to say was one of the biggest keystones in our Constitution. As time
has progressed, there has been a large step backward. In recent years, there has been an
underserved, and frankly unnecessary, crack down on media outlets. Since 9/11, it has been
viewed that any type of opposition is in the media is directly attacking the government. To close,
the concept of freedom of speech started as a way to protect the media from the government but
now it is declining due to the government’s fear of what could lie ahead.

Freedom of press must be protected so it can allow so many people to express their
feelings on any subject they can think of. When I start as a radio announcer, I want to cover
some pop culture topics and sprinkle in some pieces on my political views. There are many radio
stations that restrict their broadcasters from doing so due to the area they live in. I don’t identify
with any specific political party, but I tend to lean on the liberal side. In Utah, there is a large
number of people that identify as Republican. I fear my voice will be silenced due to where we
live. According to Bruce Brown, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of
the Press and writer for Time Magazine, he has been stopped from posting a story due to the
situations at the time. This instance led to him and his colleagues forming the Reporters
Committee for Freedom of Press. In the end, freedom of the press is important because it allows
others to share their thoughts and ideas.

Freedom of the press allows people to create change to the world around them. Although
somewhat unconventional, social media is a form of press. They both allow people to formulate
an opinion they have and display it for others to see. With social media being the most relevant
form, people my age tend to look to either Twitter or Snapchat for news. In an article by Ritu
Sharma, a writer for the Huffington Post, she explains how social media creates change. In one
example, it creates visibility. If a person wants to look for more opinions like theirs, they can
look up a hashtag, like the #TimesUp movement. In addition, it provides sufficient evidence in
horrific instances, like a school shooting. Several people posting shows that it is not just an
isolated incident. It also shows unity for notable causes like ALS. To support ASL research,
participants poured ice water on themselves to simulate what it is like to have the illness. They
must also donate $100 addition to dumping the water or they could just donate $1,000 and not do
the activity. In closing, allowing people freedom of the press can enact change to their
communities and continue their efforts.

Many may argue that freedom of the press isn’t exactly a good thing. According to
Satoshi Kanazawa, a scientific fundamentalist for Psychology Today, the concept of complete
and unconstrained freedom of the press is not what it’s cracked up to be. In a study done by
Reporters Sans Frontieres, they tested the annual index of press freedom. The United Kingdom
was ranked 24th in the world while the United States was ranked in 48th. This may be quite
discouraging, but being free to say whatever you want doesn't mean that it is necessarily true.
People can say whatever they want without repercussions if it is untrue and leads to a bad thing
happening. These instances are often outliers. It is important not focus on these instances because
they can cloud our perspective on the subject. We must focus on the events that demonstrate
proper use of freedom of the press. In summary, we must not focus on the small instances where
freedom of the press is misused because it leaves many misconceptions about the subject.

In conclusion, freedom of the press is on a decline and it must be stopped. Not allowing
this freedom will create serious repercussions. It is important to make sure freedom of press
flourishes. The freedom of the press has a rich history dating back to the American Revolution.
This freedom allowed people speak about what they were feeling without being scared about
what the British government would say. This ability to publish what is on your mind has
transcended into today but has become much different. People are becoming restricted due to
circumstance. If they decide to rebel, they are fired. Luckily we have the Reporters Committee
for Freedom of the Press to make sure we are safe. Social media isn’t exactly the traditional press
outlet, but as time has progressed, it has become the most relevant form of media. It has become
an outlet to create change in the world around us, whether it is social injustice or helping those in
need. Others may argue that freedom of the press can cause chaos, but it is important to
remember not to focus on the extremists. Changing how we treat freedom of speech will create a
happier environment.
 Works Cited

Brown, Bruce D. “America Is No Longer the Standard Bearer for a Free Press.” Time, Time, 5 Feb.

2018, time.com/5133507/press-freedom-united-states/.

Campbell, Richard, et al. Media & Culture: Mass Communication in a Digital Age. Bedford/St.

Martin's, Macmillan Learning, 2017.

“Freedom Of The Press.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-

webster.com/dictionary/freedom of the press.

“Freedom of the Press May Not Necessarily Be a Good Thing.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers,

www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-scientific-fundamentalist/200804/freedom-the-press-

may-not-necessarily-be-good-thing.

“On Aug. 4, 1735, Freedom of the Press Was Established in...” Tribunedigital-Chicagotribune, 4 Aug.

1987, articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-08-04/news/8702260884_1_new-york-weekly-journal-

percy-bysshe-shelley-george-wallace.

Packer, George. “Why the Press Is Less Free Today.” The New Yorker, The New Yorker, 20 June

2017, www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/press-freedom-new-censorship.

Ritu_Sharma. “Social Media as a Formidable Force for Change.” The Huffington Post,

TheHuffingtonPost.com, 7 Dec. 2017, www.huffingtonpost.com/ritusharma/power-of-social-

media-dem_b_6103222.html.

“Why Freedom of the Press Is More Important Now than Ever.” Ideas.ted.com, 18 Aug. 2017,

ideas.ted.com/why-freedom-of-the-press-is-more-important-now-than-ever/.