Americans Must Actively Exercise Press Freedom to Preserve Democracy
Source: Adrienne LaFrance. "What Freedom of the Press Really Means - The Atlantic." June 1, 2026. www.theatlantic.com
The Gist
The author argues that Americans can't just rely on the Constitution to protect press freedom - they have to actually use it. She says too many people think only professional journalists have press rights, when really every citizen can and should exercise these freedoms to keep democracy healthy.
Conclusion
Freedom of the press can only be guaranteed if Americans actively exercise their First Amendment rights, rather than passively assuming these freedoms will persist on their own
Premises
- American freedoms are guaranteed only in principle by founding documents, but require active practice to be maintained in reality
- Many Americans misunderstand what press freedom means, wrongly believing it applies only to professional journalists rather than all citizens
- Current political and tech leaders are systematically undermining press freedom by attacking journalists and creating propaganda networks
- The barriers to exercising press freedom have never been lower due to modern technology like smartphones and social media
- Historical examples show that press freedom has always required citizens to stand up against government overreach to advance
- Trust in journalism has declined partly due to journalists' own failures, but the solution is better journalism, not abandoning the free press
Assumptions
- Democracy requires a free press to function properly by checking government power
- Citizens have both the right and responsibility to seek truth and question authority
- Press freedom is fundamentally about citizen empowerment, not special privileges for media professionals
- Passive reliance on constitutional protections is insufficient to maintain freedom in practice