The FBI raided the home of one of my colleagues today and seized her electronic devices — even a step counting watch. It is a stunning attack on The Washington Post, on American journalism and on all of us.
I have an old friend from journalism school in college, who, in a moment of being assaulted by a protester, calmly pointed out: “The First Amendment that protects your right to stand here also protects mine.”
Our rights to freedom of expression, and of the press, are not solely about the rights of the speaker, or the reporter. They’re also about the listener and the consumer, and preserving the public’s ability to make choices about who to trust and what information to consume.
When journalists are intimidated — when the government, willingly or not, chills speech — it deprives the American people of that most fundamental right.
That’s why this strike against my colleague, Hannah Natanson, one of the best reporters at The Post, is about more than her, or The Post, or even American journalism. It’s about the state of our democracy.
So, what can you do about it? Here’s four ideas:
Support journalism. And if that’s not me or Hannah or The Washington Post, that’s okay. Find outlets and journalists you like. Look at a diverse menu of options. Pay a fair price for journalism. Hold journalists accountable by asking questions and offering your business to outlets you trust the most.
Learn about your First Amendment rights. There’s wonderful resources at the National Constitution Center and the Freedom Forum.
Exercise your First Amendment rights however that fits in your lifestyle. The five freedoms of the First Amendment are: Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition. However those fit into your life — like participating in religious activities (or not participating), reading the newspaper, attending a demonstration — are all the right ways to demonstrate your constitutional rights. If you, for example, marched to support breast cancer survivors to to raise funds for ALS, congratulations. You exercised a First Amendment right.
Participate in journalism. If you see something in your community that you have questions about, that you find interesting, that you think more people should know about — tell a journalist. Pitch them a story. Share what you know. Most reputable journalists have their contact information listed prominently in their social media bios or on their author pages. They’d be delighted to hear from you. You can take my word for it.
One of the most patriotic things you can do is hold your government and its officials accountable. Please keep in touch and help me do that work.
Email me at [email protected] and contact me securely on Signal at jacobbogage.87. And follow me on Bluesky: @jacobbogage.bsky.social.
