"An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which popular government is a sham and a mockery. A cynical, mercenary, demagogic press will produce in time a people as base as itself."
"Our republic and its press will rise and fall together."
While the first quote is clearly and demonstrably prescient in its having accurately forecast our current society, the second quote is even more important right now.
Pulitzer basically asserts herein that this republic of ours will either succeed based upon the "watchdog" ethic of the Free Press, or fail based upon its "lapdog" proclivities.
The only "Free Press" which is both still in existence today and willing and capable of performing the function of "watchdog" for our republic is right here, on the internet.
In large measure, it is FreeRepublic.
The New American Revolution is here. As I cited in my essay "The Price Of Freedom (published here of FR back in the late '90's), the shots in this revolution will be fired from the barrel of a pen... or, in this "e" era, from the keyboards of those among us interested and motivated enough to pick up these, our weapons, and engage the enemies of our republic.
Our FreeRepublic.
Fortis fortuit brava. May God be our cause, and be with our cause.
;-/