WORDmeister Note: NYTimes publisher A.G. Sulzberger delivered an extraordinary speech at his alma mater, Brown University, yesterday. He detailed direct threats to Times journalists, and pointed an unequivocal finger at President Trump as the source of threats to journalism and democracy both here and abroad.
“The true power of a free press is an informed,
engaged citizenry. I believe in independent journalism and want it to thrive. I
believe in this country and its values, and I want us to live up to them and
offer them as a model for a freer and more just world.
“The United States has done more than any other country
to popularize the idea of free expression and to champion the rights of the
free press. The time has come for us to fight for those ideals again.”
—A.G.
Sulzberger, publisher
of The New York Times, “The Growing Threat to Journalism Around the World,”
NYTimes, Sept. 23, 2019.
• Editorial Comment: Must reading.
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