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More than 300 newspapers join Globe effort on freedom of the press editorials

A central pillar of President Trump’s politics is a sustained assault on the free press.
A central pillar of President Trump’s politics is a sustained assault on the free press.

More than 300 news publications across the United States have committed to a Boston Globe-coordinated effort to run editorials Thursday promoting the freedom of the press, in light of President Trump’s frequent attacks on the media.

Some of the most respected and widely circulated newspapers in the country have committed to taking a stand in their editorial pages, including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News, The Denver Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Chicago Sun-Times. The list ranges from large metropolitan dailies to small weekly papers with circulations as low as 4,000.

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The Globe initiative comes amid the president’s repeated verbal attacks on journalists, calling mainstream press organizations “fake news” and “the enemy of the American people.” Tensions came to a boil in early August when CNN reporter Jim Acosta walked out of a press briefing after White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders refused to refute Trump’s “enemy of the people” comments.

CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta said he walked out of Thursday’s White House press briefing.
CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta said he walked out of Thursday’s White House press briefing.

‘‘We are not the enemy of the people,’’ Marjorie Pritchard, deputy managing editor of the Globe’s opinion page, told the AP last week.

The Globe’s request to denounce the “dirty war against the free press” has been promoted by industry groups such as the American Society of News Editors, as well as regional groups like the New England Newspaper and Press Association. The request also suggested editorial boards take a stand against Trump’s words regardless of their politics, or whether they generally editorialized in support of or in opposition to the president’s policies.

‘‘Our words will differ. But at least we can agree that such attacks are alarming,’’ the Globe appeal said.

As of last Friday, 70 newspapers had committed to the initiative. By Tuesday, that number had grown to about 200, and the number jumped again to more than 300 on Wednesday.

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Pritchard previously said the decision to reach out to newspapers was reached after Trump appeared to step up his rhetoric in recent weeks. He called the media “fake, fake disgusting news” at an Aug. 2 rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

‘‘Whatever happened to the free press? Whatever happened to honest reporting?’’ he asked at the rally, pointing to journalists covering the event. ‘‘They don’t report it. They only make up stories.’’

Pritchard said she hoped the editorials would make an impression on Americans.

‘‘I hope it would educate readers to realize that an attack on the First Amendment is unacceptable,’’ she said. ‘‘We are a free and independent press; it is one of the most sacred principles enshrined in the Constitution.’’

This isn’t the first time the Globe’s opinion board has taken a stand against Trump and his policies. In April 2016, while Trump was still campaigning for president, the Globe’s opinion page ran a scathing editorial in its Sunday edition, accompanied by a satirical front page envisioning an America under a Trump presidency. Trump called the Globe “stupid” and “worthless” that Sunday during a rally in New York.

The following is a list, updated Wednesday afternoon, of news organizations that have committed to running editorials on Aug. 16:

Akron Beacon Journal

Albuquerque Journal

Alpena News

American News

Ames Tribune

Anderson Observer

Anniston Star

Arizona Daily Star

Arizona Daily Sun

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Athens News

Athol Daily News

Atlantic City Weekly

Austin American Statesman

Baltimore Sun

Bangor Daily News

Beaverton Valley Times

Berkshire Eagle, Bennington Banner, Brattleboro Reformer, Manchester Journal

Big Bend Sentinel and Presidio International

Bismarck Tribune

Bluff Country Newspaper Group (six separate newspapers)

Boise Weekly

Boston Business Journal

Bozeman Chronicle

Bristol Herald Courier

Brockton Enterprise

Brunswick News

Bucks County Courier Times

Burlington County Times

Cannon Beach Gazette

Cape Cod Chronicle

Cape Cod Times

Cape Cod Times

CapeCodWave.com

Center for Public Integrity

Chagrin Valley Times

Chicago Sun Times

Chico News and Review

Chronicle Express

Chronicle-Telegram

Cincinnati City Beat

Citizen Chronicle

Citrus County Chronicle

Coachella Valley Independent

Columbian Progress

Columbus Dispatch

Commercial News

Commercial Review

Commonwealth Journal

Concord Monitor

Connersville News-Examiner

Courier Sentinel

Crawford County Independent

Daily Free Press

Daily Globe

Daily Hampshire Gazette

Daily Herald

Daily Ledger

Daily News

Daily Times

Dallas News

Dalles Chronicle

Darien Times

Daytona Beach News-Journal

Deadline Detroit

Deerfield Valley News

Denton Record-Chronicle

Denver Post

Des Moines Register

Detroit Free Press

DeWitt Observer

Dixon’s Independent Voice

Dodgeville Chronicle

Duluth News Tribune

Dyersville Commercial, Manchester Press, and Cascade Pioneer

Eau Claire Leader-Telegram

Echo Press

Edgefield Advertiser

El Diario

Erie Times News

Essex Media Group

Estacada News

Eugene Weekly

Examiner Media: The Examiner, White Plains Examiner, Northern Westchester Examiner, Putnam Examiner

Falls City Journal

Farmington Daily Times

Fayette Advocate

Fenimore Times

Finger Lakes Times

Folio weekly

Forest Grove News-Times

Forum Home

Francesville Tribune

Freeman South Dakota Editorial

Fresno Bee

Fulton County News

Garden City News

Garretson Gazette

Gaston Gazette

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Gettysbrug Times

Glasgow Daily Times

Grant County Herald

Greenboro Reporter

Greenwood Commonwealth

Gresham Outlook

Griggs County Courier and Steel County Press

Grosse Pointe News

Hardwick Gazette

Hartford Courant

Highlands News Sun

Hillsboro Free Press

Hillsboro Tribune

Holland Sentinel

Honolulu Civil Beat

Hood River News

Houghton Lake Resorter

Houston Chronicle

Idyllwild Town Crier

Insider NJ

Islip Bulletin and Long Island Advance and Suffolk County News

Jackson Citizen Patriot

Jamestown Sun

Jennings Daily News

Jersey Journal

Johnson Newspaper Corp. (five dailies and 12 weeklies)

Journal Opinion

Journal Star of Peoria

Journal-Times

Kalamazoo Gazette

Kansas City Star

Keene Sentinel

Kennebac Journal

Kenosha News

Kokomo Tribune

La Opinión

Lake Geneva Regional News

Lake Oswego Review

Lakeville Journal and Millerton News

Lawrence Journal World

Leader-News

LNP Lancaster online

Long Beach Post

Longview News Journal

Los Alamos Daily Post

Machias Valley News Observe

Mackinack Island Town Crier

Madras Pioneer

Martha’s Vineyard Times

McCluskey Gazette

Metro West Daily News and Milford Daily News

Miami Herald

Milton Times

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Montevideo American-News

Morgan County News

Morning Sentinel

Morrisons Cove Herald

Mountrail County Promoter

Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror

Nashville Scene

New York Daily News

New York Times

Newport This Week

News and Tribune

News Times

Nieman Foundation

North Carolina Health News

North Coast Journal

North Shore News Group (six community newspapers)

Northwest Michigan Voice

Northwest Michigan Voice

Observer Reporter

Oklahoman

Omaha World-Herald

Orange County Register

Park Rapids Enterprise

Patriot Ledger

Philadelphia Inquirer

Plympton-Halifax Express

Portland Press Herald

Progress Index

Providence Journal

Provincetown Banner

QNS. Queens Courier, Ridgewood Times

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Ransom County Gazette and The Sargent County Teller

Rapid City Journal

Rappahannock News (Washington, Va.)

InsideNoVa.com (Northern Virginia’s leading news web site

Rawlins County Square Deal

Real Change News

Record Journal

Register Mail

Review

Richmond Register

Ripon Press

Rochester City News

Rochester City News

Rockford Register Star

Roswell Daily Record

S. Florida Sun Sentinel

Sag Harbor Express

Salina Journal

San Antonio Express

San Diego Tribune

San Jose Mercury News and the East Bay Times

Sandy Post

Sante Fe New Mexican

Seaford and Laurel Stars

(Morningstar Publications)

Seward Independent (four publications)

Siuslaw News

SizingUpTheSouth.com, (Society of Professional Journalists - Region 3)

SLO Tribune

South Bend Tribune

Springfield Republican

St. Ignace News

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Star Democrat

Star News

Star News

State Journal Register

Steele Ozone and Kidder County Press

Storm Lake Times

Sun

Sun Journal

Swift County Monitor

”Swift County Monitor-News, Benson, MN

Grant County Herald, Elbow Lake, MN

Tampa Bay Times

Telegram and Gazette

The (Houma, La.) Courier and the (Thibodaux, La.) Daily Comet

The Altamont Enterprise Albany County Post

The Ann Arbor News

The Bay City Times

The Bedford Record-Review

The Black Voice News

The Brunswick Beacon

The Butler County Times-Gazette

The Canton Repository

The Chronicle

The Commons

The Courier

The Courier-Times (New Castle)

The Culpeper Times (Culpeper, Va.)

The Daily Advance

The Daily Item

The Daily Reflector

The Day

The Fayetteville Observer

The Flint Journal

The Gazette

The Grand Rapids Press

The Guadalupe County Communicator

The Herald

The Herald Democrat

The Herald Journal

The Herald-Times

The Hub City Post

The Hull Times

The Intelligencer

The Jefferson Chronicle

The Journal News/lohud.com

The Morehead News

The Muskegon Chronicle

The News Enterprise

The News Herald

The North Coast Journal

The North Scott Press

The Oakridger

The Plymouth Review

The Portland Tribune

The Press Democrat

The Queens Courier and Ridgewood Times

The River Reporter

The Saginaw News

The Sentinel of Gloucester County

The Shelbyville News

The Slidell Independent

the Standard

The Star News

The Sylva Herald

The Taos News

The Three Rivers Commercial-News

The Times

The Times Tribune

The Town and Country Weekly

The Wave

Times Herald Record

Times of North Little Rock

Times Standard

Times Tribune

Tomahawk Leader

Topeka Capital-Journal

Trentonian

Triad City Beat

Tucson Sentinel

Tulsa Voice

Tulsa World

Union County Leader

Valencia News Bulletin

Van Buren County Democrat

Wanderer

Wapakoneta Daily News

Warwick Beacon

Wellesley Report

West Linn Tidings

Whitman-Hanson Express

Whitman-Hanson Express/ Plympton-Halifax Express

Wilsonville Spokesman

Wisconsin Gazette

Woodburn Independent

Yankton County Observer

Yellow Springs News

YourArlington.com

This story was updated at 5 p.m. Wednesday.


Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.