The Durango Herald: It is probably fair to say this has been a difficult time for journalists trying to cover the coronavirus across the country as well as in the other parts of the world where there is a reasonably free press. Obviously, we are excluding many countries where the virus has spread and there are few press freedoms, such as China, Iran, Nicaragua and North Korea. That is also where, not coincidentally, we have grounds to suspect the governments have lied about the disease’s spread.

In most of the West, in the U.S. and in Colorado, using those press freedoms has still entailed a dance, as most anyone can tell from watching one of President Trump’s recent press conferences. The real work of reporting does not get done by being seen to try to grill the president or having him tell you to sit down and shut up, however. It means pressing harried state and local officials for detailed information when people may be least inclined to cooperate and when getting good information to the people is crucial.

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