Friendship is a funny thing. On the one hand, you want friends who will get to know you as you really are, support you when you are going through tough times, celebrate your successes and pick you up when you feel beaten.
Sound like the perfect friendship, right?
Actually, there is at least one critical ingredient missing from our list.
- They will tell you when you are wrong or out of line.
- They will tell you what people are really thinking about what you've said or done.
- They will tell you what no one else will, even if it hurts.
The role of a newspaper is very similar. Our job is to tell you the truth about what is happening in the chiropractic profession and beyond. Many times we have the pleasure of reporting the accomplishments of our profession and where we are gaining ground. Sometimes, sadly, our job requires that we let you know about certain situations that hamper or threaten chiropractic.
The fact that we aren't the voice of a particular association or organization is paramount. We don't need to put a "spin" on an article in order to make our association look better (or another association look worse). There is no one we have to answer to politically. DC is independent. We can evenhandedly praise and criticize our chiropractic organizations based upon their efforts to further chiropractic, not based upon their philosophy or agenda. This is the essence of journalistic integrity.
Over the years, there have been a few people who thought they could silence our ability to tell you the truth. They thought they could make threats or file lawsuits to censor and restrict our reporting. These few have learned the hard way that the laws of this country are particularly designed to protect the "freedom of the press." They also have learned that our integrity will not allow us to back down from reporting the truth.
Interestingly enough, over the past 25 years, not a lot has really changed in how news is reported. In the past, you received the bulk of your news from trusted news organizations, along with the occasional rumor heard at a meeting or conference. With the advent of the Web, you still rely on those same trusted news organizations. You can read the news in the newspaper or get it much faster online. And with e-mail, those rumors circulate much faster.
For the past 25 years (almost 600 issues), it has been our responsibility and honor to tell you the truth about what is happening in the chiropractic profession. DC is not published to tell you what to think on a particular issue or topic. Our goal is to give you the information you require to draw your own conclusions. We present both sides. You decide what you want to believe.
Like a true friend, we are here to tell you the truth. That's been our role for more than a quarter of a century. That is our commitment to you and to chiropractic.
DMP Jr.
Click here for more information about Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher.