They are off to a great start, with Kamala Harris giving exclusive interviews to local media outlets in Arizona and West Virginia to promote their big push for COVID relief—and to apply local pressure to two reluctant Democratic Senators. I’m looking forward to Biden appointing an FCC chair who puts the public interest over commercial profit, and increasing financial support for public media.

With a larger government subsidy, public media could play a bigger role in addressing the structural problems with our media system. It’s an investment and a guardrail against the free market’s failure to support local news. There is already overwhelming bipartisan support to save local media, and public media is still very popular. This is one reason the Trump administration was unsuccessful in its efforts to zero out funding for public media, despite attempting to defund it every year with the federal budget.

Fight misinformation online

Many bad actors exploit the open platforms to plant disinformation, manipulate public opinion, drown out critics, and undermine trust in our democracy. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but there are a lot of good ideas on how to fight back. We need to pressure tech companies to identify the misinformation through algorithms and crowdsourcing, as well as to demonetize the purveyors of these falsehoods.

The Biden administration needs to treat coordinated disinformation attacks from Russia and Iran as what they are: cyberattacks designed to interfere with a free and fair election. Special task forces should be set up in the appropriate government agencies to guard against these attacks. I made the argument last year, after multiple cyberattacks, that we should heed the military’s call for a branch dedicated to fighting the cyber war. Sadly, Trump created the Space Force instead.

There’s a careful balance when crafting such legislation, of course; you never want to create an excuse to censor someone. However, there are common sense laws that could help. One is an advertiser verification requirement for election ads on social media. Another is to require all political campaign advertisers to include “paid for by” disclaimers. Most states require these kinds of disclaimers for TV and radio, but not the internet.

Make press freedom a focus of U.S. foreign policy

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has the goal of restoring American leadership with press freedom around the world. We cannot solve complex geopolitical issues without a firm commitment to a free press. For example, if China had allowed its journalists to speak freely, the world might have gotten ahead of the COVID-19 outbreak. Imagine the world if that had been allowed to happen.

The CPJ had several recommendations for President Biden, including the following:

• President Biden should deliver a major speech in support of press freedom. The speech should articulate the importance of the press to support democracy and human rights, honor reporters who have been killed, and outline the role that social media companies should be expected to play.
• Appoint a Special Presidential Envoy for Press Freedom. This would be someone who reports directly to the Secretary of State, and can give high visibility when speaking out about press violations around the world. This office would be a voice for global media organizations facing threats, and journalists wrongfully imprisoned. The Envoy and their office would work to free journalists, attend trials, and support legislative efforts that enhance press freedom.
• Ensure the independence of government-funded media. The U.S. government-funded media—including Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty—have been a source of credible news and information for people around the world for generations. Trump nearly destroyed that, with blatant political picks that sought to push his selfish agenda. We must ensure that never happens again.

Establish Press Freedom Day

Every Nov.11, I am usually showered in thanks for Veteran’s Day. The gratitude is greatly appreciated; wouldn’t it be nice to honor the Fourth Estate and the guardians of the First Amendment? The United Nations already celebrates World Press Freedom Day every May 3, in support of a strong, free competitive press in every nation. Perhaps Biden could declare a day here in the U.S. to thank the reporters, journalists, photographers, and broadcasters who put their lives on the line everyday to bring us the truth. America shouldn’t need a reminder of the importance of the free and fair media in our lives, but in this day and age, we do.

Build a Fallen Journalist Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The words “Murder the media” were written on the Capitol doors by Trump’s mob. Members of the media were threatened, assaulted, and their equipment destroyed; a noose was left hanging above the destroyed gear.

I almost threw up watching those clips. This is the nation that, again, specifically enshrined the principle of a free press into the First Amendment of the Constitution. I can’t believe we have to argue with fellow citizens for the importance of an independent media here in U.S.

I strongly support a 2019 bill that proposes a national monument in Washington, D.C. to honor fallen journalists killed in the line of duty. You can see a list of the bipartisan bill’s sponsors here. Both New Hampshire senators sponsored the bill, noting that New Hampshire resident James Foley was one of the many journalists who deserved to be honored. He bravely reported what was happening in Northern Syria, and became the first American to be kidnapped and beheaded by ISIS.

Legislation allowing for the memorial to be built in Washington, D.C. finally passed. Now the foundation overseeing the project is collecting donations to make it a reality.

Bring back the Fairness Doctrine

The Fairness Doctrine was in place for decades. It simply required broadcasters to devote some time to matters of public interest, and to allow contrasting views. There are a lot of misperceptions surrounding the Fairness Doctrine, some of them intentionally cultivated. It never stifled any talk show hosts or viewpoints; it just prohibited stations from broadcasting one single viewpoint every day. Ronald Reagan had it eliminated in 1987, and the effects were instantaneous.

Right-wing extremists like Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes became media titans. There were suddenly entire stations across the U.S. devoted completely to conservative causes. Thousands of hours of right-wing propaganda attacking immigrants, minorities, the LGBTQ community, those fighting against climate change, and the social safety net … with zero competing perspectives. No wonder people got brainwashed.

In 2004, Sinclair Broadcast Group planned to force its 62 stations at the time to air a blatant anti-John Kerry documentary. A massive sponsor boycott reversed their plans in that instance, but Sinclair has since been successful forcing stations to run conservative programs and “must run” speeches espousing right-wing talking points.

Restoring the Fairness Doctrine would require stations to, at some point, give the other side of the story. It’s not a panacea for everything, but restoring it would curb the worst abuses and might help keep people from turning into zombies.

Teach Media Literacy in Schools

As part of an English curriculum in middle school many, many years ago, I remember tests that with multiple headlines. The student’s job was to identify the positive headlines, the negative headlines, and the neutral headlines. For me, this assessment was incredibly easy. Yet I remember some of my classmates struggling with this; I wonder how many of them ended up on Parler before it was shut down.

I cringe when my coworkers tell me that I need to get off mainstream media and follow the “truth.” According to them, that “truth” can only be found at OANN or Newsmax. I always challenge them to find one negative article about Donald Trump on those sites, or one positive article on any Democrat. I try to make a point that they need to recognize agendas. Believe it or not, most of them react positively to this, since their whole belief system is centered around not being “sheep.”

Media Literacy Now is leading the grassroots movement to teach critical thinking skills for students around all types of media. The New York Times profiled the organization in a story featuring a fed-up teacher in Atlanta, whose students constantly shared sensational, made-up headlines on social media. Teaching media literacy skills to teenagers and younger students can protect readers and listeners from misinformation, just as teaching good hygiene can reduce disease. A RAND report last year said research showed signs that media literacy increases “resiliency to disinformation.” Media literacy is likely the best tool we have in combating the current crisis.

Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota introduced a bill last year, calling for $20 million to fund media literacy education. Even without legislation, teachers can incorporate media literacy concepts into existing classes, like my teachers did so long ago. There are many resources to serve that goal. I never knew, before middle school, that bias even existed in newspapers or T.V. Now it’s painfully obvious. I only wish many of my friends and co-workers had been in that class with me.

Everything I’ve outlined here will require a commitment—from the government, from schools, from tech companies, and yes, from regular citizens. Yet it’s a commitment worth making. There are many powerful people who don’t want a free and fair press; we must be as dedicated to protecting it as they are with destroying it.