There is no doubt that freedom of speech in this country is a double edged sword. Although each and every citizen in this great country holds the power to say or express whatever they feel, some ideas are better left unsaid. Usually when discussing issues in regard to the first amendment right to freedom of speech, the topic of censorship is under fire. At what point do we as a people draw a line? What speech should not be protected under the first amendment? The highest court in the land holds that speech or expression should be censored if it is obscene, profane, slanderous, or presents a clear and present danger. Although the press has been limited by these constraints before, the topic under fire currently is the limit to what the press prints about politicians. There is no question that the media can make or break a politician or that politicians have a love hate relationship with the media. The media has unraveled conspiracies deep within the fabric of the United States government. In 1972. President Nixon was re elected to office for his second term as the commander and chief. Richard Nixon won his re election by a clear margin. In that same year, one Yale graduate and a college dropout, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein delved deep into Washington’s underworld as reporters for the Washington Post and uncovered the largest story of their lives. Woodward and Bernstein had managed to connect Nixon’s top aides and executives to the break in at the ,then Democratic Party Headquarters, at Watergate. The Watergate scandal proved to be a catastrophe for the Nixon administration leading to arrests, imprisonments and resignation for Nixon. Some say that this was a great piece of investigatory journalism and in many ways, it was. The Watergate scandal revealed Nixon for the cut throat and unethical politician that most of Washington knew he was. Journalism conducted in this manner, sometimes known as investigatory journalism, can be very beneficial to society. Investigatory journalists like Woodward and Bernstein are sometimes referred to as the fourth check of government. The media watchdogs protect the citizens and expose their politicians’ most dirty secrets and lies. In these investigations, journalists often employ the same dirty and dishonest practices that they seek to expose. This type of journalism seems to be the most interesting and most Americans have a certain proclivity to read and believe these types of articles. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with this type of journalism. So long as it pertains to the policy issues of a politician. Reporters have been caught up in only leaking stories that have to do with the personal lives of politicians. The personal life of an official has nothing to do with his/her ability to create effective policy. Many candidates have been ruined by reporting that was irrelevant to the question of whether or not the candidate would make a good policy maker. In this past election, Howard Dean seemed to have all of the answers. His campaign initially was very effective and many critics had all but written him off as the next president. After making a “yeeha” sound to express his exuberance over the results of the primary, the press took the video clip and aired it hundreds of times. After the ill fated yeeha became a symbol for the decline of Howard Dean but why? His policy hadn’t changed. None of his views or opinions differed from weeks previous when he had been the front runner for the democratic party. Journalism such as this focuses too heavily on the personal life of candidates which have little to no effect on how that official makes policy. President Clinton was up for impeachment for committing adultery in the White House. The fiasco ended up being the subject of national scrutiny for years and still continues to be Clinton’s namesake. Why does any of this matter? John F. Kennedy did the same things in the White House and is held to iconic status in this country. What effect does a person’s home life have on their professional life? These facts are irrelevant and prove to be the downfall of many officials. The press goes out of their way to expose these politicians as adulterers or basket cases when really, what does any of this have to do on their role in the government? The media has shifted the focus time and time again to scrutinizing facts from deep within a person’s life rather than deep within their public records. The press should be limited to just simple issues of policy. Reporters should focus on what officials do in the office rather than what they do in the bedroom.