Press, freedom, and power

In places in the world where press freedom is threatened, like Zimbabwe, this is what it looks like.

Zimbabwe Special Report: On a Rampage

The government or other groups intimidate journalists with jailings, charges, violence or other means. This is the essence of an illiberal society using force to undermine the freedom of one of the most important insitutions in a society, a free press.

In America and the West, bizarrely, the free press uses its freedom to pressure and intimidate - public servants, businesses, and other public and private institutions - through public pressure and aggressive investigation meant to take down public figures, whether such efforts serve constructive ends or not.

It's not as illiberal as, say, Zimbabwe. But neither is it the strongest liberal democratic commitments.

It'd be nice to live in a liberal democratic country or world where liberal commitments around engagement, thought, and free, open, and honest expression were taken seriously by its liberal democratic institutions, including the press.

But as long as those more substantial liberal values and commitments are not taken seriously, dictatorial regimes like Robert Mugabe's in Zimbabwe or wherever will be able to perpetually look at the more illiberal instincts and tactics of those of us in the West and say, "I do what you do, but with more force and more conviction to get the job done." That is the very same argument offered by radicals of every stripe in Western countries to their less radical brethren for why force is necessary and why they are the true believers in their various causes.

Is Robert Mugabe illiberal or a true believer? He is clearly illiberal. And so are all of our tactics for using force instead of persuasion to bully our way through difficult issues that need more thought and engagement and free, open, and honest expression.

It's not just that Robert Mugabe is worse. It's all bad. And always will be, no matter how we spin our more aggressive, illiberal ways.

Love,
Ben