Katharine Viner Quotes

Journalism is what maintains democracy. It's the force for progressive social change.

If we don't have a vigorous questioning, aggressive journalistic community and mythology, democracy itself is in great jeopardy.

As Americans, we rightfully place tremendous value on having a free and independent press. Our role as journalists is to give voice to the voiceless, and hold our leaders and institutions accountable. But the circle is only completed when that information is consumed by a free-thinking and engaged audience.

When journalists forget that our job is to question and annoy those in power, there can be huge consequences.

Let's face it: WikiLeaks exists because the mainstream media haven't done their job.

Being a reporter is at the very core of a democracy, being a free person in a free society.

The function of a newspaper in a democracy is to stand as a sort of chronic opposition to the reigning quacks.

The job of media is the accountability of government.

Press freedom has great virtues. It is not about irresponsible scandal-mongering, although that may be part of the picture. It is a means of revealing wrongdoing.

We need journalists to be fearless and hold power to account.

Our duty as journalists is to use our clarity - and our imagination - to build hope in the societies in which we work. Our duty is to keep holding power to account, and to fight for press freedom around the world.

I'm not a critic, I'm a journalist. I'm doing my job holding the government to account.

The job of the press is to encourage debate, not to supply the public with information.

I have always been of the opinion that the right kind of journalism is a critical part of our democracy.

To newspapers and publishing houses I urge the use of fact over fiction, freedom of the press, and responsibility at all times.

We don't go into journalism to be popular. It is our job to seek the truth and put constant pressure on our leaders until we get answers.

I tell you, in my opinion, the cornerstone of democracy is free press - that's the cornerstone.

The most important responsibility we have as journalists is to question those who are in power. I honestly believe that.

In essence, I see the value of journalism as resting in a twofold mission: informing the public of accurate and vital information, and its unique ability to provide a truly adversarial check on those in power.

A key purpose of journalism is to provide an adversarial check on those who wield the greatest power by shining a light on what they do in the dark, and informing the public about those acts.

Democracies succeed or fail based on their journalism.

Freedom of the press is not questioned when investigative journalism unearths scandals, But that does not mean that every classified state document should be made available to journalists.

My goal, as always, is simply to inform the public about an issue that is nearly impossible for them to learn about on their own. That is my only goal as a reporter.

Whistle-blowing and publishing should not be seen as a crime, and certainly not as terrorism.

It is the role of good journalism to take on powerful abusers, and when powerful abusers are taken on, there's always a bad reaction. So we see that controversy, and we believe that is a good thing to engage in.