I usually pay no attention to the commemorations with which legislators frost their calendars. However, some of the Whereases in Senate Commemoration 28, honoring KELO-TV’s Angela Kennecke for her investigative reporting, deserve notice, especially given that its conservative sponsors will be asking their Trumpy colleagues to endorse this language praising journalism:
WHEREAS, the free press and American journalism, are one of the pillars of democracy our nation was founded upon; and
WHEREAS, the role of the news media in a free and democratic society requires journalists to constantly question authority and hold the actions of those in positions of trust and authority in light for the appropriate scrutiny of the people; and
WHEREAS, objective journalistic investigative reporting and honest political public service are natural allies; and
…WHEREAS, “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered.” It flourishes in the absence of public accountability and when our government’s actions are hidden from the public eye. A free-press, eternal vigilance, diligent reporting, and an informed public are instrumental to maintaining the freedoms of the American people… [SC 28, posted 2018.02.08].
The free press, pillar of democracy, instrumental to maintaining freedom—true that! We’ll see how many Senators agree tomorrow (Monday) when SC 28 comes to the Senate floor.