Multiracial democracy has existed in the United States of America for fewer than 60 years, and it has always been fragile and contested. Following the result of yesterday’s presidential election, we now face a country where our fledgling multiracial democracy is no longer secure and we as a nation, and we as a free press, must gird ourselves for what could be an unparalleled moment in American history.
With a president-elect who has openly threatened the press and this nation’s democratic institutions, we must reinforce the critical role an independent media plays in a free society to both bear witness and serve as a check on power. Our profession must be fearless in its dedication to informing the public about the aggressive use of power that is most certainly ahead and how it will impact the lives and freedoms of everyday Americans, but particularly those who are the most vulnerable and who have been targets of the president-elect.
For too long, many in media rationalized or evaded the racist, homophobic, misogynistic and anti-democratic rhetoric of the former president, and therefore, played a role in normalizing a leader who has been called a threat to democracy by his own former Chief of Staff and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as experts on authoritarianism. Too often, the former president’s behavior was framed in the media as being distasteful rather than dangerous.
But it is dangerous. That rhetoric has led his followers to violent threats and intimidation against perceived enemies, including judges, election officials and election workers. We’ve witnessed the public’s eroding belief in the truth. While the media was trying to appear neutral, real threats were building strength in our communities, using social media and ‘news adjacent’ sites to promote their anti-democratic message.
In a free society, the press cannot exist merely as a neutral observer. Our job is to protect democracy. If democracy is to survive, we as a profession must take its potential demise seriously and we must rise to the occasion.
Three years ago, the Center for Journalism & Democracy was founded by veteran journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones because she believed too many news organizations were failing to meet this mandate. The mission of the Center is to strengthen historically-informed, pro-democracy journalism and to support the development of investigative journalists from Historically Black Colleges and Universities who will report on and push back against injustice and inequality and strengthen U.S. democracy.
For journalists, this moment demands not only truth-telling but a resolute commitment to the principles of pro-democracy journalism – a journalism that upholds democratic ideals, holds power accountable, and educates the public on their civic rights and responsibilities. Pro-democracy journalism requires that we champion transparency, actively combat misinformation, and amplify voices that are often marginalized or silenced. As journalists, we are not merely reporters of fact; we are defenders of an informed, engaged public regardless of the political party in power. A courageous press is essential to democracy, and the challenges ahead demand that we do not shrink from this role.
The Center for Journalism & Democracy is dedicated to equipping journalists with the tools and knowledge necessary to navigate these difficult times. So, we invite you to use our Democracy Toolkit, which offers resources for reporting on the complex landscape of today’s democratic threats.
We invite you to watch our Democracy Summit, which convenes professional and student journalists to learn from leading experts about how to identify and cover threats to democracy.
The theme of our most recent summit was covering oligarchy and the threats growing oligarchic forces pose to our democracy. We recently witnessed clear examples of this when two daily newspapers’ billionaire owners made the controversial decision to prevent their editorial boards from endorsing the Democratic presidential candidate in what many perceived to be anticipatory obedience of the former president’s potential win. The 2023 Democracy Summit focused on propaganda and how democracies die and the 2022 Democracy Summit centered on the threats to elections.
Our center is determined in this moment to stand firm and help our profession in its work as a firewall of democracy. We invite you to support our work and the work of our colleagues across the nation.
Together, let us continue to privilege truth over power, foster accountability in our work, and be relentless in our commitment to a resilient, expansive democracy.
In solidarity,
The Center for Journalism & Democracy