The Press

Information

- how to get it

- how to process it

Acquisition of Information

Access to Information

- Freedom of Information.



Jefferson: Whereas it appeareth that however certain forms of government are better calculated than others to protect individuals in the free exercise of their natural rights, and are at the same time themselves better guarded against degeneracy, yet experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny; and it is believed that the most effectual means of preventing this would be, to illuminate, as far as practicable, the minds of the people at large, and more especially to give them knowledge of those facts, which history exhibiteth, that, possessed thereby of the experience of other ages and countries, they may be enabled to know ambition under all its shapes, and prompt to exert their natural powers to defeat its purposes

Jefferson: The people are the only censors of their governors: and even their errors will tend to keep these to the true principles of their institution. To punish these errors too severely would be to suppress the only safeguard of the public liberty. The way to prevent these irregular interpositions of the people is to give them full information of their affairs thro’ the channel of the public papers, & to contrive that those papers should penetrate the whole mass of the people. The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. But I should mean that every man should receive those papers & be capable of reading them.


Common Terms

the printing press
literacy
evolution of media rights
censorship
sedition
propaganda
John Peter Zenger
the business of media
Benjamin Franklin
radio
television
cable
internet
social media
infotainment 
traditional media
new media
social media
mass media
information
loud signal
political watchdog
policy agenda
fireside chats
personal presidency
fake news
media bias
reporters
journalism
- skepticism
- fairness
editors 
producers
owners
consumers
public relations
Watergate scandal
- others
objectivity
fairness
government impact
private / public ownership
First Amendment 
promotion
post offices and post roads
FRC / FCC
regulations
fairness doctrine
Telecommunications Act
consolidation