It only serves to show what sort of person a man must be who can't even get testimonials. No, no; if a man brings references, it proves nothing; but if he can't, it proves a great deal.
Joseph PulitzerRead
An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which popular government is a sham and a mockery
Interpretation
A free and responsible press is essential for a genuine democracy.
Joseph Pulitzer emphasizes the critical role of an independent and ethical press in safeguarding public virtue and accountability in a democracy. Without such a press, the very foundations of popular government become meaningless, highlighting the necessity of courage and intelligence in journalism to serve the public good.
In practice
During a keynote speech on democracy, one might cite this quote to stress the importance of a responsible press.
It only serves to show what sort of person a man must be who can't even get testimonials. No, no; if a man brings references, it proves nothing; but if he can't, it proves a great deal.
What a newspaper needs in its news, in its headlines, and on its editorial page is terseness, humor, descriptive power, satire, originality, good literary style, clever condensation, and accuracy, accuracy, accuracy!
Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light.
If you will give the matter a moment's thought, you'll see that memory is the highest faculty of the human mind.
The American people want something terse, forcible, picturesque, striking - something that will arrest their attention, enlist their sympathy, arouse their indignation, stimulate their imagination, convince their reason, awaken their conscience.
Our Republic and its press will rise or fall together.
Really important meetings are planned by the souls long before the bodies see each other. Generally speaking, these meetings occur when we reach a limit, when we need to die and be reborn emotionally. These meetings are waiting for us, but more often than not, we avoid them happening. If we are desperate, though, if we have nothing to lose, or if we are full of enthusiasm for life, then the unknown reveals itself, and our universe changes direction.
Perhaps I am naive, but I believe that at this point in history, the greatest danger to our freedom and way of life comes from the reasonable fear of omniscient State powers kept in check by nothing more than policy documents.
Of course I litter the public highway. Every chance I get. After all, it's not the beer cans that are ugly; it's the highway that is ugly.
Racial prejudice, anti-Semitism, or hatred of anyone with different beliefs has no place in the human mind or heart.
The opposite of manliness isn't cowardice; it's technology.
Like the grasses showing tender faces to each other, thus should we do, for this was the wish of the Grandfathers of the World.
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