By: The Poly Post Editorial Board, March 4, 2025
The First Amendment is a right, not a recommendation.
The press and the people the First Amendment serve have a right to information that keeps democracy healthy, and any imposition on that right is un-American.
The First Amendment declares both freedom of speech and of the press as two facets of expression and acknowledges the press as critical to a functioning democracy. The slogan for The Washington Post, which has existed since 1887, is “democracy dies in darkness.” It’s not dead, but it is dying under President Donald Trump’s administration.
In one of many unprecedented moves by this administration, the Associated Press, the oldest and largest national wire service in the United States, has lost exclusivity to the White House. Although AP journalists are still allowed on White House grounds, they are no longer included in the pool of journalists who have exclusive access to certain areas, like the Oval Office and Air Force One.
An attack on AP is an attack on journalism and what it means. But what’s worse is AP will not be Trump’s only victim. This isolation of one has emboldened Trump to impact all media, by directly choosing who can cover his presidency.
Although it is common for presidents to not have the best relationship with the press, never has a president ignored years of precedent and limiting exactly which outlets may cover his presidency.
With this move, several outlets would be losing their independence, which takes away the integrity of their work and ultimately harms the American people because it encourages the use of cherrypicked and pre-determined information. We could soon only be reading news from one source.
AP is facing this persecution simply because it will not write the words “Gulf of America” after Trump’s executive order changed the Gulf of Mexico to the aforementioned name. But AP has every right to use whatever words they would like to notify people of current events.
Not only is it free, but AP is fiercely non-partisan and independent unlike many of its legacy media counterparts. In a world full of algorithms and catering to specific audiences, AP is a reminder of the original mission of journalism, which is simply to inform. It is a pillar of the journalism industry.
With a mission of preserving a free press, AP has not gone quietly, trying to sue three Trump officials for infringement of their First Amendment rights, but so far, all three attempts have been unsuccessful.
Furthermore, several news organizations, including right-leaning outlets like Fox News and Newsmax, have publicly disagreed with this decision. Also, 40 news organizations signed onto a letter organized by the White House Correspondents’ Association, urging the White House to reverse its policy against AP.
Former President John F. Kennedy gave a speech he called “The President and the Press.” In his speech, he acknowledged the role of the press in maintaining a healthy democracy while also imploring them to consider the impact of what they print for the sake of national security. Instead of berating them for what they wrote and attempting to control them, he encouraged a collaborative relationship.
Toward the end, he acknowledged the importance of a press free of governmental control, especially when it comes to covering the wrongs of an administration.
“Without debate, without criticism, no administration and no country can succeed —and no republic can survive,” Kennedy said.
As student journalists, we are future stewards of the freedom of expression and speech in America, and we strongly believe in the public’s right to information. We condemn all forms of restriction, manipulation and silencing of the press, and we will continue to serve the community of Cal Poly Pomona and beyond after we graduate with these guiding principles and ethics.
Feature graphic by Connor Lālea Hampton