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| Benjamin Franklin |
“Freedom
of the Press in America does not now, nor did it ever, mean freedom from
prosecution for what you report. Anyone can be arrested for anything at any
time, though that doesn’t mean you will be found guilty. In America, a
journalist who is arrested for reporting truth would then have an ever BIGGER
story than they had in the first place. In fact, that is half of the goddam fun—that
risk of being prosecuted for publishing the absolute truth!
"Freedom of the
Press does not now, nor did it ever, mean whistleblowers who give away top
secret materials could do so without facing prosecution, nor has it ever meant
that a journalist who assists someone who breaks the law to provide them with
material would be immune from prosecution. Certainly not! If you help a
whistleblower break the law, you might well find yourself in prison!
"Freedom of
the Press does now and has always meant the press had the ability to
responsibly report facts. That does not mean you won’t get arrested along the
way, and it certainly does not mean that everyone will love you for what you
publish. Now you must excuse me. I must get to Miss Lilly’s Brothel. ‘Early bird’
specials end at 4 p.m. ‘Early bird’—get it?”
Benjamin Franklin, founding father, inventor, postmaster, diplomat, and one-time president of Pennsylvania (seriously, he was).
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