This is the final editorial this board will publish this year, and in choosing how to sign off, we recognize an urgent truth worth restating: journalism matters. It matters profoundly, especially now, especially here, especially after years of attacks from the highest levels of power.
In wake of Donald Trump’s presidency — a period marked by lies dressed as “alternative facts,” constant cries of “fake news” and unprecedented attacks on journalists — it's clear that trust in journalism has been bruised, battered and severely tested. Yet, it has never been more crucial for people to defend and support the indispensable role journalism plays in sustaining our democracy.
The Daily Cardinal has been a longtime key player in the local press, strengthening its trust with local clubs, organizations, nonprofits, businesses and lawmakers. The Cardinal continues to play an instrumental role in keeping our local community informed on serious issues, including breaking former U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde’s past statements about young voters to the UW System’s deal with the state Legislature freezing hiring for diversity, equity and inclusion positions. There is no doubt our work at this paper has an impact on Madison, as other papers should have across the country.
Local and national journalism is more than a commodity to be casually consumed or discarded: it’s a public good, an essential foundation upon which democracy itself rests. When journalists lose credibility or when people withdraw their trust, the consequences ripple far beyond the newsroom. Communities become less informed, citizens disengage, corruption festers and democracy weakens, opening the door to manipulation and authoritarian impulses.
Support your local journalists; they hold governments accountable, illuminate hidden injustices, uncover community issues overlooked by distant powers and amplify the voices of those who may feel unheard and invisible. They connect neighbors to one another and citizens to their elected representatives, creating accountability and transparency on every level.
Take a moment to reflect on what could have been without the journalists who pushed back against deceitful narratives, without persistent fact checking, without investigations exposing abuses of power — democracy itself might have crumbled under the weight of unchecked falsehoods and rampant abuses of authority.
Journalism has been and will remain imperfect — mistakes happen — but at its core, the mission never wavers: to inform, empower and to hold the powerful accountable.
As we leave you with this final editorial, we call upon you to renew your trust, deepen your investment and heighten your engagement with journalism. Subscribe to local newspapers, support independent and national reporting and speak out against those who aim to silence, discredit or distort the truth in this current administration. Journalism relies not just on journalists, but on the collective commitment of citizens to demand transparency and accountability.
Without journalism, democracy fades into darkness. Truth becomes negotiable and accountability vanishes. Your trust in journalism isn’t merely an endorsement, it’s a declaration of the kind of society you want to live in, one that values truth, accountability and the right to be informed.
Stay vigilant, stay informed, stay engaged. Democracy demands nothing less.
