Editor, Gazette-Journal:
It is the duty of the media not only to inform but to serve as a watchdog to protect the interests of the public. Unfortunately, much of the broadcast and print news media, not to mention the wire services, highlight only the news that the government approves, largely ignoring stories that hold the government accountable. I would also cite a form of self-censorship that has taken hold since the Covid shutdowns and mandates.
At the risk of being labeled a conspiracy theorist, I am obliged to point to the huge elephant that has served to prompt the self-censorship that is currently inhibiting honest discourse within our society. Another conversational taboo can be added to the rules of polite conversation, i.e., politics and religion, currently a more confrontational taboo—that of a discussion involving the Covid vaccine. I can think of no other topic that so quickly dampens cordial relations with others than to blunder into a commentary involving the Covid vacci...