The American journalism landscape is changing rapidly.
Over the past two decades, 3,500 newspapers have shut down. Large conglomerates have consolidated ownership of local TV stations. And earlier this month, public broadcasting lost its federal funding.
Public trust in the media is also at a record low — about 28%. In the 1970s, when journalist Marty Baron started his career, that share was around 70%.
“We had disclosures about Watergate, we had the Pentagon Papers,” Baron said. “I think the public could see that the press was serving the public interest.”
Distrust from government, however, is nothing new, Baron said. He saw it throughout his career, which culminated in his role as the executive editor of the Washington Post from 2012 to 2021. Before that, he led the Boston Globe during its Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into coverage of the Catholic priest sex abuse scandals, which inspired the 2015 Oscar-winning film “Spotlight.”
He said the difference today is that press freedom no longer seems like a guarantee.
“I took a free press and free expression generally for granted, and now I don't think I can take any of that for granted,” Baron said. “Now you have a president who is doing everything in his power to undermine the press.”
Baron will speak Nov. 2 at the Gateway Journalism Review’s 14th First Amendment Celebration on “The Case for Worry ... and for Optimism." While he sees plenty of reason for concern about the state of journalism, he also sees reasons for hope.
“The reality is that the kinds of pressures that we faced in our industry probably would have led to the demise of another industry, and yet we're still around,” Baron said.
He said he thinks people are beginning to realize that threats to press freedom threatens everyone’s free speech. And for Baron, free speech and a free press are integral to maintaining a democracy.
“In order for a free and independent press to exist, we have to have a democracy,” Baron said. “And in order for a democracy to be a true democracy, there has to be a source of independent information.”
To hear a longer version of this conversation with Baron, including about his work at the Washington Post during President Donald Trump’s first term, listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube, or click the play button below.
Related event
What: The Gateway Journalism Review’s 14th First Amendment Celebration
Where: Hilton St. Louis Frontenac, 1335 S. Lindbergh Blvd.
When: 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Nov. 2
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Darrious Varner is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
