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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2018
editor@dailyastorian.com
KARI BORGEN
Publisher
JIM VAN NOSTRAND
Editor
Founded in 1873
JEREMY FELDMAN
Circulation Manager
DEBRA BLOOM
Business Manager
JOHN D. BRUIJN
Production Manager
CARL EARL
Systems Manager
OUR VIEW
Press is not enemy of the people
Every size publication plays a role in democracy
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Daily Astorian is joining today with publications around the U.S. to issue
a warning about the ongoing assault on America’s free and independent press, one of the paramount
institutions enshrined in the Constitution. We stand together in defense of our profession and the vital
role it plays in government for and by the people.
N
ews people are accustomed to
having a complex relationship
with public officials and the
partisan citizens who side with them.
In some ways, we are like the stereo-
typed “Internal Affairs Division” in
too many television cop shows. Just
as Internal Affairs generates hisses by
“policing the police,” in America a
free press jousts with those in power,
trying hard as we can to document
their deeds, misdeeds, selflessness and
self-dealing.
While we work to objectively cover
government, basic human nature
inclines us toward feeling some sympa-
thy toward those who share our inter-
est in public service, along with disgust
at those who abuse the public trust. We
must constantly guard against becoming
either too friendly or too cynical toward
politicians and bureaucrats. It isn’t our
job to be pals or foes.
Most American journalism is
intensely local. We report on what we
know best — our own towns, counties
and states. Our readers tend to be inter-
ested in the same fundamental ques-
tions. Can we afford the taxes that pol-
iticians want? Are those taxes fair?
How are they being spent? Are we
safe? Do our kids have a decent future?
Answering these questions — along
with chronicling the day-to-day lives of
our neighbors — is both our passion and
how we make a living in this capitalist
system. If we fail at this job, our readers
and advertisers abandon us.
At newspapers like The Daily
Astorian, we have a strong sense of alli-
ance with the public. Citizens ask for
help nearly every day, ranging from
answering obscure historical questions
to investigating alleged criminality or
official malfeasance. Our small staff
takes every one of these requests seri-
ously, sometimes responding with back-
ground work that spans months — to
the frustration of those who hope for
quicker justice.
Resulting coverage in recent years
has included detailed reporting on the
housing crunch and homelessness, man-
agement turmoil between county com-
missioners and the county manager,
gaps in mental health and drug treat-
ment, and data-driven examinations of
the criminal justice system, among other
topics important to our readers.
Our family-owned newspaper group
Newsboys gather in front of the Astoria Budget before their rounds in the 1920s.
has partnered with another to dramati-
cally increase news coverage of Oregon
government in Salem. We constantly
watch for other opportunities to be use-
ful during a time of dramatic changes in
the U.S.
We’re proud of our work. But
we’re the first to admit these efforts
are not very remarkable in a nation
that, despite our industry’s well-docu-
mented economic challenges, still pos-
sesses a vibrant and dedicated news
corps. From one end of the U.S. to
the other, journalists are engaged in a
moment by moment quest to improve
government accountability and tell the
stories of this great land.
The Daily Astorian and its sister
newspapers in the Columbia-Pacific
region aren’t your enemy. Neither is the
rest of the American press. Be annoyed
all you want at errors we make, or if we
exhibit instances of bias, insensitivity or
laziness. But don’t believe anybody who
says we’re pursuing any agenda, other
than digging out the truth and reporting
it as well as we can.
Most of all, we are proud of our com-
munities. We stand shoulder to shoul-
der with you in striving to keep alive the
great American experiment in democ-
racy. We need you with us.
Self-governance demands that our citi-
zens need to be well-informed and that’s
what we’re here to do. We go beyond the
government issued press release or brief-
ing and ask tough questions. We hold
people in power accountable for their
actions. Some think we’re rude to ques-
tion and challenge. We know it’s our
obligation.
People have been criticizing the press
for generations. We are not perfect. But
we’re striving every day to be a better
version of ourselves than we were the
day before.
That’s why we welcome criticism.
But unwarranted attacks that undermine
your trust in us cannot stand. The prob-
lem has become so serious that newspa-
pers across the nation are speaking out
against these attacks in one voice today
on their editorial pages. As women’s
rights pioneer and investigative journalist
Ida B. Wells wrote in 1892: “The people
must know before they can act and there
is no educator to compare with the press.”
GUEST EDITORIAL
We’re standing up to bullying
Public and press must
work together to defend
democracy
W
e’ve been complacent.
We thought everybody
knew how important a free
press was to our world and that all this talk
about us being the enemy of the people
would be dismissed for the silliness that it
is. But the reckless attacks have contin-
ued — instigated and encouraged by our
president.
When the leader of the free world
works to erode the public’s trust in the
media, the potential for damage is enor-
mous, both here and abroad. We once set
an example of free and open government
for the world to follow. Now those who
seek to suppress the free flow of informa-
tion are doing so with impunity.
The time has come for us to stand up
to the bullying. The role journalism plays
in our free society is too crucial to allow
this degradation to continue.
We aren’t the enemy of the people. We
are the people. We aren’t fake news. We
are your news and we struggle night and
day to get the facts right.
On bitter cold January nights, we’re
the people’s eyes and ears at town, vil-
lage and school board meetings. We tell
the stories of our communities, from the
fun of a county fair to the despair a fam-
ily faces when a loved one dies.
We are always by your side. We shop
the same stores, attend the same churches
and hike the same trails. We struggle
with daycare and worry about paying for
retirement.
In our work as journalists, our first
loyalty is to you. Our work is guided by a
set of principles that demand objectivity,
independence, open-mindedness and the
pursuit of the truth. We make mistakes,
we know. There’s nothing we hate more
than errors but we acknowledge them,
correct them and learn from them.
Our work is a labor of love because
we love our country and believe we are
playing a vital role in our democracy.
A guest editorial from the New York Press
Association, part of the nationwide defense of
freedom of the press.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Thanks to Price for
her public service
T
he news that Cindy Price is leaving the
mayoral race due to family issues is a great
disappointment (“Price withdraws from Astoria
mayor’s race,” The Daily Astorian, Aug. 15).
Over the past two decades, Cindy has proven
herself worthy of the position of mayor by being
a thoughtful and responsive city councilor and
by her selfless volunteer work, which includes
serving on the governing boards of Astoria
Visual Arts, KMUN/Coast Community Radio,
and the Astoria Ferry, and working night shifts
at the Astoria Warming Center.
Those of us who have volunteered alongside
Cindy like and respect her immensely. We thank
Cindy for her service, and wish her and her fam-
ily the very best. The Astoria Visual Arts Board
looks forward to reaping the benefits of her con-
tinued service in the future.
LISA SMITH
Astoria
Why can’t Astoria
restrict fireworks?
I
’m adding my name to the list of requests to
limit fireworks. Each year, for several nights,
many of us here on Irving Avenue are subjected
to watching our pets being traumatized from
the blasts of fireworks in our area, including all
the wildlife and bird population, not to mention
our veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) — there are more than you may realize.
Many of the blasts are illegal, reaching dan-
gerous heights, capable of starting fires in the
dry brush. Each year we report the incidents
to the police, only to be told that there were no
incidents on arrival of the patrol cars. The inci-
dents go on all night, especially from the Harri-
son Circle area, the same places each year.
We are fortunate to have an excellent display
of fireworks at the East End Mooring Basin.
Why can’t Astoria restrict fireworks in our
neighborhoods, as other cities in Oregon do?
TERRIE REMINGTON
Astoria
Paranoia or
political expediency?
G
eorge Washington hired the Prussian gen-
eral Friedrich Von Steuben to organize the
colonial forces. He also hired the French Mar-
quise De Lafayette, who was of significant assis-
tance to Washington and the war effort. Neither
was an American citizen.
These, and many other foreign citizens,
fought in the Colonial War. Whatever George
Washington and the American Congress prom-
ised them was honored. The 10,000 immigrants
who enlisted in the U.S. military, starting with
President George W. Bush, in order to improve
their chances of citizenship, now find that prom-
ise meaningless. There are some obvious sim-
ilarities between the current administration’s
handling of immigrant enlistees, and the way it
was done during the height of the Cold War. The
current administration’s requirement that the
U.S. military discharge such immigrant enlist-
ees is shabby, and reminds me of my own situa-
tion in 1962.
As a result of the paranoia created by Sen.
Joseph McCarthy, I could not be promoted
to staff sergeant or go to officer candidate
school. Never mind the fact that I had defected
from behind the Iron Curtain — I was suspect
because I had contact with my mother and sib-
lings in East Germany. Writing to them with
my return address of Fort Campbell, Kentucky,
might have been giving away secrets.
It appears that there are certain similari-
ties between the paranoia of the Cold War and
the tactics of the current administration; except
that our current policies on the subject are likely
driven by political expediency, rather than for
alleged reasons of national security.
ERHARD GROSS
Astoria
We need to get out
of our comfort zone
T
he other morning as I sat on a bench over-
looking my “Walden Pond,” where Alder
Creek flows into the mighty Columbia River, I
got to pondering what are the keys to success
and self-fulfillment, and what are some of the
things that limit it.
irst, a clue from the Bible: “Do not neglect
the gift given you.” It’s there — “seek and
you will find” it.
Second, we all have gifts, but the sad thing is
that many of us fail to use them. Why? Because,
as Shakespeare said: “Our doubts are traitors,
and make us lose the good we oft might win, by
fearing to attempt.”
Third, we need to get out of our comfort
zone and have the guts to share our unique gifts
with others. We cheat ourselves, the world and
our creator by not harvesting and sharing our
unique gifts.
A wise sage has this advice “Of all sad
words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these:
‘It might have been.’” So, if we start now and
share our unique gifts, we won’t be faced with
“it might have been,” and hopefully realize
success.
JIM BERNARD
Warrenton
F