The Leader’s editorial perspective is shaped by the following guiding principles:
1. Democracy is a work in progress.
Democracy is not a form of government that is “one and done”. In order to survive, a democratic government has to continuously adapt to changing social, political, economic, and environmental circumstances as it strives to provide security to its people and improve the welfare of all its citizens – all while protecting their liberties at the same time. The revolutionaries in 1776 embraced this aspirational notion of improving governance, first by declaring their independence from England, then drafting the Articles of Confederation, then the Constitution, and then, most revolutionary of all, the first 10 Amendments – making clear that our Constitution, as good as it was and is, is neither complete nor perfect.
2. Expect more from business and politics.
As we strive to perfect American democracy, we need to recognize that we are all leaders who have some responsibility for sustaining it. At the very least that means holding our leaders in business and politics accountable for their actions. We cannot accept political leaders who fall back on ideology to obstruct the will of the people and the workings of government or business leaders who don’t believe it is their responsibility or that of their business to support the public good. We need leaders who recognize the destabilizing threats posed by our systemic problems and prioritize the nation’s stability over profit and ideology. Most importantly, we need leaders with the courage to stand up to and hold their peers accountable when they act against the public good.
3. Common purpose, not divisive speech, is what makes America great.
An unrelenting, laser-like focus on systemic problems and problem-solving can limit the impact of disinformation campaigns aimed at undermining trust in government and democratic institutions by earning and re-earning that trust on an ongoing basis. Domestic and foreign efforts to flood the 24/7 news stream with divisive lies, distortions, distractions, and obfuscations and spread them on social media are the greatest threat to our democracy. But when given the opportunity, Americans have proven to be courageous and pragmatic problem-solvers and innovators not beholden to political, commercial, or religious dogma and ideological agendas. At the Leader, our focus on the ideas, knowledge, and aspiration needed to solve problems is intended to establish a foundational narrative for a thriving democracy that is less vulnerable to falsehoods and more resilient when attacked.
4. Bias is inherent on all sides and a starting point for discussion, not a reason to dismiss a disagreeable point of view.
Our knowledge and what we understand of the world are necessarily shaped by our personal experiences and the people we listen to – this is our bias. Everyone has a bias, whether they admit to it or not. When we pursue a topic for a story, we are often motivated by our bias. This can be a good thing, provided we rely on verifiable evidence from credible sources in reporting our conclusions. At the Leader, our bias favors democracy and the problem-solving culture needed for it to thrive.
5. We are part of the story.
In a free society, so much of what we know about the world is largely the product of competing narratives that seek our attention and approval. As journalists, we contribute to those narratives as soon as we publish. So it’s important to recognize that the words we choose and the headlines we write to attract attention are going to support one or more of the existing narratives, whether or not that is our intent. For this reason, we need to be sure that we define and frame our stories according to our editorial lens and the often more nuanced logic of our findings rather than the parameters and simplistic characterizations spun by the newsmakers we cover.
6. The truth is out there awaiting discovery, collection, and connection.
The volume of noise in the infosphere challenges our ability to keep up with the vast amounts of knowledge being produced and made available. Our job is to sift through the many narratives to gather that essential knowledge and connect the dots, putting the news of the day in a larger context. By clarifying the multiple storylines shaping our world, we can better understand the problems before us and perhaps help us prioritize what needs to be done to address them so our democracy can continue to thrive.
