councilor.org
| Source | Michael Perelman |
| Date | 06/11/01/22:05 |
| From www.iraqwar.ru
New times, old ideas 02.04.2003 ...I have tried, since I came into power,to bring the whole of the German press into line. To do so, I have not hesitated, when necessary, to take radical measures. It was evident to my eyes that a State which had at its disposal an inspired press and journalists devoted to its cause possessed therein the greatest power that one could possibly imagine. Wherever it may be, this fetish of the liberty of the press constitutes a mortal danger par excellence. Moreover, what is called the liberty of the press does not in the least mean that the press is free, but simply that certain potentates are at liberty to direct it as they wish, in support of their particular interests and, if need be, in opposition to the interests of the State. ...It is not easy, at the beginning, to explain all this to the journalists and to make them understand that, as members of a corporate entity, they had certain obligations to the community as a whole. And endless repetitions were necessary before I could make them see that, if the press failed to grasp this idea, it would end only in harming itself. Take the case of a town with, say, a dozen newspapers; each one of them reports the various items in its own way, and in the end the reader can only come to the conclusion that he is dealing with a gang of opium-smokers. In this way the press gradually loses its influence on public opinion and all contact with the man in the street... (Adolf Hitler speaking about the place of journalism) ????????: Hitler's speech (Hitler's Table Talk by Hugh Trevor-Roper) -- Ralph Johnson |
Copyright (c) 1998, Joongpil Cho