FROM THE PUBLISHER’ S DESK
Free press and public discussion
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,” Thomas Jefferson famously wrote to his friend.
Perhaps, the best quotes about free press being the hallmark of democracy have been said, oft-repeated or reinvented with their core essence remaining intact. We pull them out of the quotes inventory and refresh them each time the First Amendment is assailed. Time and again, the press is being challenged and defended. In the Trump era, this has become a regular routine.
Twitter has become a battlefield and President Trump’ s attack post, from where he constantly fires a salvo of taunts at the Fourth Branch, whom he calls“ the enemy of the people” who are“ very dangerous and sick.”
“ Criticizing the news media— for underplaying or overplaying stories, for getting something wrong— is entirely right,” the New York Times wrote in its Aug. 15 editorial.“ News reporters and editors are human, and make mistakes. Correcting them is core to our job. But insisting that truths you don’ t like are‘ fake news’ is dangerous to the lifeblood of democracy. And calling journalists the‘ enemy of the people’ is dangerous, period.”
The New York Times is among the more than 350 U. S. media organizations that published editorials— coordinated by The Boston Globe— denouncing the presidential“ war against the free press.”
“ The press is neither the enemy of the people nor its ally, but rather its possession,” The Atlantic said in its editorial titled,“ The Freedom of the Press is Yours.” In the same vein, the Valencia County News-Bulletin in Belen, New Mexico, wrote,“ We are not the enemy of the people; we are the people.”
While the Pacific islands media may be outside of Trump’ s firing zone, the journalism industry this part of the world has its own battle to fight.
Suppression of free speech is most blatant in Nauru, whose government has zero-tolerance for dissent. In July, the Nauruan government banned journalists from the Australia Broadcasting Corp. from entering the country“ under any circumstances,” citing the organization’ s“ blatant interference in Nauru’ s domestic politics prior to the 2016 election, harassment of and lack of respect toward our president in Australia, false and defamatory allegations against members of our government, and continued biased and false reporting about our country.”
4
Elsewhere in the Micronesia region, where some of the small independent publications are run by expats, some journalists have more difficult choices to make.
A couple of years ago, FSM has set a precedent for declaring a journalist persona non grata.
In Palau, a foreign journalist was threatened with deportation some years ago for her hard-hitting stories involving the administration.
In another island, the editor of one of our partner publications is faced with the dilemma of exposing the labor abuse perpetrated by an influential group and“ protecting me and my family.” He confessed,“ It’ s causing me great pain for those people who are suffering. It’ s despicable and I feel helpless.”
Attacks on the press are particularly threatening to small independent publications that struggle to survive amid the industry’ s economic uncertainty. Guam, though a U. S. territory supposedly protected by First Amendment, is not immune to such a predicament. Given Guam’ s small market, where there is a thin line between business and government, operating a media outlet is much more challenging.
I’ ve seen this many times when I was editor of the now-defunct Marianas Variety-Guam, which for more than 10 years operated on survival mode because then publisher Amier Younis refused, repeatedly and rightfully, to succumb to the pressure of advertisers.
And now running my own self-funded publication, the painful economic aspect of journalism becomes even more real and intimate. Recently, a certain advertiser pulled the rug under my feet. They cancelled their already signed contract following the Pacific Island Times’ publication of an article they conveniently called“ fake news.”
Despite these challenges, the Pacific Island Times— now going on its second year— is determined to hold out as long as it can.
“ Public discussion is a political duty,” the New York Times editorial reads, citing a 1964 Supreme Court decision,“ That discussion must be‘ uninhibited, robust, and wide-open,’ and‘ may well include vehement, caustic and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials.’
In reality, free press exists, but there may be consequences. Just the same, our team will continue telling the story and exploring the truth. We are joining our national counterparts in upholding free speech.
Publisher / Editor-in-Chief Mar-Vic Cagurangan publisher @ pacificislandtimes. com
Associate Editor Bruce Lloyd editor @ pacificislandtimes. com
Associate Editor( Pacific Note / Palau) Ongerung Kambes Kesolei okkesolei @ gmail. com
Palau Bureau Chief Bernadette Carreon carreon. bernadette @ gmail. com
Contributing Writers Raquel Bagnol Craig Burns Zaldy Dandan Jayne Flores Bruce Hil Joyce McClure Denise Mendiola Diana Mendoza Joseph Meyers Alex Rhowuniong Johanna Salinas
Visual Editor Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Sales and Marketing Executive Jan SN Furukawa jan @ pacificislandtimes. com
Account Executive Anna Marie Alegre sales @ pacificislandtimes. com
Administraitive Assistant Lolita Therrel lolitsky @ yahoo. com
*** Pacific Independent News Service LLC Tumon Sands Plaza 1082 Pale San Vitores Rd. Tumon Guam 96931 Telephone:( 671) 929-4210 Email: PacificIslandTimes @ gmail. com Website: www. pacificislandtimes. com
P. O. Box 1880 Koror, Palau 96940 Telephone 680-7794304
The Pacific Island Times is published monthly and circulated in Guam and Palau by the Pacific Independent News Service LLC. Editorial and advertising submissions become property of the Pacific Island Times and cannot be lifted without consent of the publisher. Views and opinions from contributors do not necessarily represent the editorial position of the Pacific Island Times.