WASHINGTON — On Thursday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel published an op-ed by U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) in response to various hit pieces printed by the outlet. The senator details how the mainstream media’s bias and social media censorship against conservatives endanger both the freedom of speech and freedom of press in this country.
The full op-ed can be found here, excerpts are below, and the senator’s full responses to various Milwaukee Journal Sentinel hit pieces here.
“It is sad, and a troubling reflection on the current state of mainstream media, that I find myself having to respond to yet another unwarranted hit piece by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and its Wisconsin affiliates. I write this response with no guarantee they will run it but with full assurance that, if they do, they will publish an accompanying smear in response.”
…
“Freedom of speech and a free press are indispensable to liberty and a vibrant democracy. Both are currently imperiled. Freedom of speech is under assault by the growing power, bias, and censorship of social media oligarchies. A free press is threatened by its self-inflicted bias and groupthink, and by its alliance with, and promotion of, one political party over the other.
“Mainstream media have abused the trust vested in them by the public. This breach of trust has exacerbated the political divide. Those on the liberal end of the political spectrum can be confident that media will reinforce and promote their beliefs while denigrating and working to marginalize the viewpoint of conservatives. Knowing their views will not be presented fairly, conservatives become increasingly frustrated and support candidates who fight back.”
…
“The yellow journalism hit pieces following the June 28 press event, where I simply allowed five women and a 13-year-old child to tell their stories about possible vaccine injury, is a prime example. Instead of genuinely listening and showing even an ounce of human sympathy for their tragic stories, most of the media used the occasion to attack me.”
“Instead, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel used the occasion to publish a defamatory hit piece they had been working on for months. I encourage readers to go to my webpage and read the written questions John Fauber submitted to me and my written responses. Then compare those questions and answers to his June 29 hit piece. You will get a good sense with how insidious the process of yellow journalism is.”
