Published in the April 2-16, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life

America’s Founding Fathers had the right idea about providing a wide berth of freedom to the fourth estate — the media — to report on government officials. The freedom of the press of the First Amendment was unprecedented in giving a greater latitude to report and comment on public leadership. No doubt Ben Franklin, who started his career as a printer and newsman, influenced the discussion at the Constitutional Convention on why Americans deserve access to news and opinion through a free press.

With the power of the press comes great responsibility — and we at Morgan Hill Life take that responsibility seriously. The guiding light of every newspaper must be maintaining the public trust and enhancing the public good. Those two principles should also be shared by every elected and appointed public official – and especially so when dealing with the media.

In a small community such as Morgan Hill where there is a tight bond between citizens, the team at Morgan Hill Life has had to weigh personal friendships with officials against the common good. It’s occasionally a delicate balance that can test our relationships and our moral compass.

A trustworthy newspaper and politicians should never cross the boundary line of ethics. For example, if an elected official receives information in a closed meeting session about a personnel matter such as the hiring of an employee, he violates the public trust if he passes confidential information from that meeting, either directly or indirectly through an intermediary, to a reporter to be used in a news story. That is a clear violation of public trust. Such indiscreet actions might even result in the elected official facing criminal charges. If this breech of trust is exposed, it damages the reputation of the official and the newspaper.

Some citizens have asked us if we intend to publish endorsements during the upcoming elections. We have thought carefully about this matter, and the answer is that we won’t. We do not have an editorial board and feel it would be unfair for us, with our personal friendships with many elected officials in the city, school and county governments, to endorse any candidate for elected office. However, we are considering the option of giving candidates for selected local government races the opportunity to provide a short guest commentary explaining why they are running to serve the public.

To give the public an opportunity to hear from their leaders about newsworthy issues, we publish front-page guest columns that are written on an invitational basis. Many leaders in the community have provided us with their commentary on a locally significant issue that helps better inform our readers. Several local leaders have declined this opportunity to connect with our readers, and this is fair if that is their decision. We also have had leaders accept the opportunity to write a guest column, then, immediately prior to our editorial deadline, fail to provide the commentary.

Ultimately, our local leaders — including leaders in the media industry — demonstrate their ethics and character through their actions and how they communicate with the public through the press. The relationship between public officials and the press is a delicate dance — and serious missteps in this minuet can jeopardize the quality of life in our community.