Reckoning with the assault on press freedom

Independent journalism is in danger everywhere it exists. Misinformation is on the rise. Artificial intelligence is reimagining how news is produced — and how we can be deceived. Public trust is declining. Crackdowns on news organizations and threats to journalists are increasing. Financial uncertainties threaten the industry’s long-term stability, leaving news organizations vulnerable to commercial and political interference.

Canada has a long history of supporting an independent press and freedom of expression. But, as the recent federal election demonstrated, attempts to bar news organizations from covering events, arbitrary restrictions on the ability of reporters to question candidates, and rising threats to reporters illustrate the potential erosion of those traditions. Reporters have been arrested for simply doing their jobs. Proposals to defund the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) that surfaced in the campaign are likely to come up again.

We need only look at what’s happening in the United States to understand the fragility of an independent press. A highly politicized Federal Communications Commission is threatening the broadcast licences of major networks, raising fears that those who don’t comply with the Trump administration’s orthodoxy could be put out of business. 

ABC News settled what experts regarded as a frivolous lawsuit by US President Donald Trump. CBS News appears to be on the verge of paying millions of dollars to resolve a ridiculous $20-billion suit by Trump over a routine editing practice on “60 Minutes” because its parent company fears Trump might block a mega-merger. 

The Associated Press, a respected news organization with reporters in 100 countries, has been banned from the White House press pool for refusing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. The Voice of America (VOA), a vital voice for democracy in countries shrouded by censorship, has been defunded.

As a former newspaper reporter and editor, my fervent hope is that the American press proves resilient. As a former head of public affairs at the US State Department, I am less confident that the Voice of America will survive the assault by the Trump administration. For decades, Russia, China, Iran and other countries failed to silence VOA. Now, Trump is doing their dirty work for them.

A few weeks ago, I moderated a panel at Indiana University on the challenges facing global journalism. The panel included Carl Bernstein who with Bob Woodward, broke the Watergate story in the Washington Post; Ann Simmons, former Moscow bureau chief for the Wall Street Journal, and Kunal Majumder, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ representative in India and an expert on the ethics of AI. The consensus was autocratic regimes are emboldened as the United States cedes its role as a bastion of freedom of expression. Violence, disinformation and censorship are thriving, and independent journalism is at grave risk everywhere. There also were glimmers of hope. 

Fortunately, press freedom in Canada is not in critical condition, but three important steps should be considered to ensure the safety and sustainability of journalism.

First, at a time when newspapers are disappearing across Canada, the role of the CBC is more important than ever. Here, in the Maritimes where I live, the Halifax Chronicle newspaper is a shadow of its former self. It is vital for the entire country that the Carney government ensures that the CBC remains stable financially and free from any political interference.

Second, our schools and universities should devote substantial resources to improving media literacy as we confront the challenges posed by the rampant manipulation of information to undermine public confidence and spread misinformation. Students, and adults for that matter, should learn to think critically about media messages and understand the myriad ways in which we can be deceived. The rise of new media and nonprofit news organizations provides essential proof of life for investigative and explanatory reporting. In some cases, journalism is better than ever. But a functioning democracy requires an educated public to discern what’s real and what’s fake.

Finally, the federal government should take two important steps to keep the free press healthy financially and solidify its ability to hold officials accountable. A comprehensive policy is required to help news operations, both large and small, both traditional and new media, modernize “media funding and economic models,” as proposed by the Foreign Interference Commission. And the deep flaws in the Access to Information Act exposed last year by The Globe and Mail, other media outlets and critics pushing for a modernization of the law, must be repaired to promote accessibility to government actions and accountability for government employees.

Confronting increasing global conflicts, existential climate threats, and deepening political and social divisions fueled by disinformation and misinformation, a free and vibrant press is more important than ever. We must protect our press and our democratic values and keep a sharp watch on what is happening in the US, where the beacon of an independent press and freedom of expression is being darkened.

Douglas Frantz is a former managing editor of the Los Angeles Times, national security editor of the Washington Post, and shared a Pulitzer Prize as a foreign correspondent at The New York Times. He lives in Nova Scotia.