Then he drew a chuckle when he quoted Jefferson again: "I've given up newspapers, and I find myself much happier."
Jefferson's views aren't in conflict.
The press can be prickly, prying and provocative. Public officials and others in power do not enjoy the incessant scrutiny and critical eye of journalists performing their watchdog role.
But Jefferson realized that a free press, however bothersome and imperfect, is essential for democracies to emerge and thrive.
His seemingly incongruous views are worth remembering on May 3, World Press Freedom Day. Designated by the United Nations in 1993, it is the day each year that we celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom. It also reminds us that in too many parts of the world it is commonplace for governments to harass, detain, fine, attack and kill journalists for their "crime" of trying to tell the truth.
Last year was one of the most deadly for journalists in the past two centuries. Of the 78 who died, nearly a third were lost while covering the conflict in Iraq. But many others perished in tyrannical or lawless societies when they probed too deeply for public information or offered views considered too critical.
Large numbers are in prisons, languishing in unsanitary conditions, without adequate food of medical care. At year's end, more than 20 remained jailed in Cuba alone. And according to the respected New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists, China has retained its title as the world's leading jailer of journalists with 42 editors and writers in prison as the current year began.
Throughout our nation's history, the United States has rightly been seen as a shining example of press freedom. But in marking World Press Freedom Day, it is important to recognize that our image is now being tarnished by dangerous trends toward government secrecy and control.
Roughly 30 American journalists currently are at risk of being sent to jail for refusing to reveal the identities of fellow citizens who provided them with information on a confidential basis. It is sadly ironic that when this type of coercion occurs in other countries, our government denounces it as little more than a crude effort by prosecutors and judges to use journalists as an arm of the police.
Similarly, many no longer see America as the model of openness for emerging democracies. While more and more countries embrace the concept of open records, experts say the United States is moving toward greater secrecy.
Some 61 countries have passed laws giving citizens the right to examine government records and other previously secret information. More than half of these laws were adopted in the last decade.
David Banisar, author of a respected study examining open access laws around the world, recently proclaimed that "a new era of government transparency has arrived." Emerging democracies recognize they must be more open to thrive in the global age of information.
That is why so many are concerned about the trend toward secrecy in the United States.
"Ironically, secrecy has made the most dramatic comeback in the country that purports to be the most democratic," says Thomas Blanton, director of the non-profit National Security Archive at George Washington University.
In it's recently released annual report to the president, the federal government's Informational Security Oversight Office said that the number of decisions to classify government documents soared from 9 million in 2001 to 15.5 million last year - an 81 percent increase.
At the same time, the agency reported, the declassification of government records declined from 100 million pages in 2001 to just 28 million in 2004.
In his recent appearance at the American Society of Newspaper Editors convention in Washington, President Bush suggested the increased secrecy is necessary for national security. True, government secrecy has expanded in the aftermath of 9/11. And some of it is justified.
But much of the increase has nothing to do with the threat of terrorism. A high percentage of requests under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) are from ordinary citizens trying to get basic information from their government. Many are requests from those who served in the armed forces who want nothing more than to check on their veteran's benefits or military service record.
The most recent government figures show that the number of FOIA requests for the first time topped 3 million in 2003, a 36 percent increase from the previous year. The sharp increase is not for records involving national security, but rather from citizens seeking information from the Social Security Administration.
This past year, while I was speaking with a visiting group of journalists from a variety of emerging democracies, a few made an unusual plea. They urged greater openness by our government and an end to the threatened imprisonment of journalists. If America is seen as moving toward greater secrecy and control of its press, they argued, it gives license to their own governments to follow the same path.
That's worth thinking about on World Press Freedom Day. Throughout our history, the United States has been a beacon for press freedom, giving hope to the repressed and powerless.
But when we opt for secrecy and press control, we set a horrible example for would-be democracies. And we give cover to the dark forces of tyranny who jail, harass or murder journalists and others who seek nothing more than to tell the truth.
Andrew Alexander is the Washington bureau chief for Cox Newspapers. He serves as chair of the Freedom of Information Committee of the American Society of Newspaper Editors.
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