The Washington Post denied Wednesday that its new slogan, “Democracy Dies in Darkness,” is a response to President Trump, who has called the collective news media an “enemy” of Americans.
The paper debuted its new slogan Tuesday night on its website, just below the masthead.
“This is actually something we’ve said internally for a long time in speaking about our mission,” Kris Coratti, a spokeswoman for the paper, told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday. “We thought it would be a good, concise value statement that conveys who we are to the many millions of readers who have come to us for the first time over the last year.”
When asked if the phrase had anything to do with Trump, Coratti said it did not.
Veteran Post journalist Bob Woodward has used the phrase before, sometimes substituting the word “democracy” for “democracies.”
Post reporter Robert Costa said Tuesday night on Twitter that “in almost every Woodward speech I’ve seen, he finds a way to mention that phrase, to warn against secret government.”
But some on social media mocked the ominous tone of the slogan.
“‘Democracy Dies in Darkness’ is something a sincere goofball would say in a Preston Sturges movie,” wrote Politico media reporter Jack Shafer on Twitter.
“Democracy Dies in Darkness” is something a sincere goofball would say in a Preston Sturges movie.
— Jack Shafer (@jackshafer) February 22, 2017
Mollie Hemingway, a conservative writer, remarked, “I thought people were joking about this new [Post] motto: ‘Democracy dies in darkness.’ They were not. I shouldn’t be laughing so hard.”
Others made it clear they believe the motto change has everything to do with Trump.
On Twitter user said, “‘Democracy dies in darkness’ is good but try out my suggestion.” He included an edited image of the Post’s homepage to have the slogan say “Trump is full of shit.”
‘Democracy dies in darkness’ is good but try out my suggestion @washingtonpost pic.twitter.com/KzJkaMtRoL
— Paul Rizzo (@PaulRizzo504) February 22, 2017
