Stefano Rodotà on political power's influence on the media

Stefano Rodotà warns in the left-liberal daily La Repubblica that press freedom should not be curbed by political power: "The war which totalitarian countries have begun against freedom of information on the Internet is simply the final and most spectacular stage of a conflict that has gone on for centuries. … It is a long story that began with the birth of public opinion. … This is the root of a process that gives democracy its purpose and also progressively elevates the press itself to the status of a fourth power. … The press and the entire system of communication presented themselves as a place of freedom and a new form of representing society. But this change brought with it an extension of the conflict zone. … We are talking about familiar techniques that range from censorship to economic conditioning … to the careful selection of compliant journalists and the threat of physical elimination. But it's not just totalitarian and authoritarian regimes that should be a source of concern. In democratic countries the all-pervasiveness of different communication forms that shape public opinion is allowing the demands of a political power that sees precisely this communication system as an important tool for preserving its own power to grow."

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