Jan. 6 anniversary: Washington Post media columnist urges more ‘pro-democracy’ coverage ‘before it’s too late’

Washington Post media columnist Margaret Sullivan is urging news organizations to bolster its “pro-democracy” coverage ahead of the one-year anniversary of the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill.

“In the year since the Jan. 6 insurrection, mainstream journalists have done a lot of things right,” Sullivan began her piece Monday. “They’ve published major investigations, pointed out politicians’ lies and, in many cases, finally learned how to clearly communicate the facts of what happened leading up to that horrendous riot at the U.S. Capitol — and what is happening now as pro-Trump Republicans steadily chip away at the very checks and balances that saved American democracy last year. Much of this work has been impressive.”

“And yet, something crucial is missing. For the most part, news organizations are not making democracy-under-siege a central focus of the work they present to the public.”

Sullivan insisted it is “unquestionable” that American democracy “is teetering,” citing a recent editorial from the New York Times declaring “Every Day Is Jan. 6 Now” due to ongoing pressure from election conspiracy theorists and GOP-led voting reform efforts in various states, summarizing their actions will “make it harder for citizens to vote and easier for partisans to overturn legitimate voting results.”

After highlighting other “important journalism” being done on the subject from the Associated Press, NPR and The Atlantic, Sullivan warned “this pro-democracy coverage is not being ‘centered’ by the media writ large” and that “It’s occasional, not regular; it doesn’t appear to be part of an overall editorial plan that fully recognizes just how much trouble we’re in.” – READ MORE