Dear Mother Jones Reader, 

Today is World Press Freedom Day. It’s an annual reminder of the significance of the freedom of expression around the world, started by the United Nations three decades ago. And it has me thinking a lot about how freedom of the press has been challenged in the last few years.

It’s become routine for the Trump administration to belittle and bemoan journalists and their duty to the truth. The president is on the record about it: “These networks and these newspapers are really no different than a highly paid political operative and it has to stop. It has to be illegal.” But the danger is not just coming from Donald Trump—it’s from every direction. Newspapers are being decimated or shut down (at the rate of two a week!), public radio has been defunded, and corporate and billionaire media owners are defanging watchdog journalists. 

It’s a tough time to be in journalism. But there is a brighter possible future, and Mother Jones and our sister radio show, Reveal, are helping to build it. 

I got my start reporting at a fierce alt weekly in Minneapolis/St. Paul—working at Mother Jones was a dream job for me back then. Still is. After 10 years as co-editor-in-chief, alongside our amazing current editor-in-chief, Clara Jeffery, I took on the CEO role in 2015 because of this simple truth: Journalists should do our damnedest to make sure journalism survives.

That newspaper where I learned not to take no for an answer died a week before the 2020 election. The piece announcing its demise included the line, “You have to adapt or die. Sometimes you adapt and die.” The erosion of news is a huge danger to democracy.

Five months into 2026, the news cycle feels harrowing each day. Breaking news flies by so fast that we can hardly get the context before another story drops. Investigations reveal what’s happening behind closed doors—or deep in the woods, like in our recent print, radio, video, and web dive into how Roundup, the controversial herbicide, is tainting American forests and tearing Trump’s coalition apart.

Here at Mother Jones, we feel the strain of the news cycle, too. But we’re not backing down. It’s a staggering time in our nation—in the world—and you need truth.

I’ve said it before, but when it comes to freedom of speech and the pursuit of the truth, our options come down to this: We can fold. Turn off the lights, stop digging for the truth, give up on independent journalism.

Or we can fight. Turn up the lights, dig even deeper. Find the truth about every story hidden in the dark corners of government and corporate power.

Of course, we choose to fight. We’ll never surrender. We’ve chosen to fight for the last five decades, even when we were sued by the rich and powerful, even when previous administrations tried to smear our name and reputation. We’ll always choose to keep giving you the news and resources you need to make informed decisions in your daily life.

And it’s not because we’re not affected by the danger looming ahead. The thinly and not-so-thinly veiled threats grate our nerves and make us worry for our colleagues here and abroad. But the truth is too valuable. It’s an essential piece of the democracy that we hold dear.

We do this work for you—and we do this work because of you. When Mother Jones launched in 1976, the idea of a newsroom for the people, not the profits, was unusual. Now, our newsroom is fueled by tens of thousands of donors who choose truth over lies, democracy over fascism, and hope over despair. It’s a difficult time for many right now, with prices continuing to rise and futures uncertain, so if you’re in a position to make a donation, would you give today to mark World Press Freedom Day? Your gift will be put to good use to keep Mother Jones reporters digging and our investigations free to read online.

I still feel exactly the way I felt back when I was skipping to my first day at that alt weekly: ridiculously fortunate to work where I do. Because at Mother Jones, we have something more durable and more powerful than corporate backers: you. Thanks to you, we can keep impudence and irreverence alive.

Today, and every day, we can’t take the freedom of the press for granted. Much to the chagrin of the folks in power, we still have that freedom, enshrined in our First Amendment right.

Onward,
Monika Bauerlein
Mother Jones