--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are a democracy, and there is only one…" description: "\"We are a democracy, and there is only one way to get a democracy on its feet in the matter of its individual, its social, its municipal, its State, its..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/joseph-pulitzer-15695_democracy_we-are-a-democracy-and-there-is-only-one_1443331.jpg" --- # We are a democracy, and there is only one way to get a… ![“We are a democracy, and there is only one way to get a democracy on its feet in the matter of its individual, its social, its municipal, its State, its national conduct, and that is by keeping the public informed about what is going on.” quote by Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/joseph-pulitzer-15695_democracy_we-are-a-democracy-and-there-is-only-one_1443331.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/joseph-pulitzer-15695_democracy_we-are-a-democracy-and-there-is-only-one_1443331.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/joseph-pulitzer-15695_democracy_we-are-a-democracy-and-there-is-only-one_1443331.jpg) > “We are a democracy, and there is only one way to get a democracy on its feet in the matter of its individual, its social, its municipal, its State, its national conduct, and that is by keeping the public informed about what is going on.” [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stresses that an informed public is essential for a functioning democracy. **In simple terms:** Informed citizens sustain democracy. Key Takeaway Keep citizens well‑informed. Themes democracy information public sphere media citizenship Mood assertive inspirational urgent Type political media civic When to use this quote - journalism - education - public policy - community outreach Key Concepts political theory media studies civic engagement Questions to Reflect On - How can media ensure accurate information? - What role do citizens play in staying informed? A Different Perspective May ignore misinformation challenges. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Democracy Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-feet-4329785/) [Democracy Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-way-571569/) [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Only](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/only/) [Public Informed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-informed-1628718/) [State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Way Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-democracy-767913/) ## Related quotes > [We are a democracy, and there is only one way to get a democracy on its feet in the matter of its individual, its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/we-are-a-democracy-and-there-is-only-one-way-to-get-a-democracy-on-2/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I think it is something that is so important, to be very aware of the direction in which the 21st century is going with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfonso-cuaron/i-think-it-is-something-that-is-so-important-to-be-very-aware-of-the/) [Alfonso Cuaron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfonso-cuaron/) > [Democracy doesn't work unless the public is informed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-pitt/democracy-doesn-t-work-unless-the-public-is-informed/) [Brad Pitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-pitt/) > [You're encouraging a response in citizens and the public, that has nothing to do with an informed decision, that has nothing to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-bruni/you-re-encouraging-a-response-in-citizens-and-the-public-that-has/) [Frank Bruni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-bruni/) > [“The great danger in the South comes precisely from the fact that the public is not informed. Newspapers shirk notoriously their editorial responsibilities and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howard-griffin/the-great-danger-in-the-south-comes-precisely-from-the-fact-that-the/) [John Howard Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howard-griffin/) > [As a journalist, I fundamentally believe that keeping the public informed is an essential part of democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-brennan/as-a-journalist-i-fundamentally-believe-that-keeping-the-public/) [Margaret Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-brennan/) > [The only way back toward a democracy and economy that work for the majority is for most of us to get politically active once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/the-only-way-back-toward-a-democracy-and-economy-that-work-for-the/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [We were on the way to democracy. We didn't say that we are fully democratic, we were on the way, we were moving forward.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bashar-al-assad/we-were-on-the-way-to-democracy-we-didn-t-say-that-we-are-fully/) [Bashar al-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bashar-al-assad/) > [In the words of Louis Brandeis, the Supreme Court justice, we have a choice between a democracy or vast concentrations of wealth. We have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/in-the-words-of-louis-brandeis-the-supreme-court-justice-we-have-a/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [In an autocracy, one person has his way; in an aristocracy, a few people have their way; in a democracy, no one has his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celia-green/in-an-autocracy-one-person-has-his-way-in-an-aristocracy-a-few-people/) [Celia Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celia-green/) > [If you look at the way all of the new reform movements dedicated to the public interest are living and thriving on the Internet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/if-you-look-at-the-way-all-of-the-new-reform-movements-dedicated-to/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [Well, that's the way democracy works. We have to build this Europe with the material we have at our disposal. And this material is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-garton-ash/well-that-s-the-way-democracy-works-we-have-to-build-this-europe-with/) [Timothy Garton Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-garton-ash/) > [The way you get democracy to function is by informing the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-f-kennedy-jr/the-way-you-get-democracy-to-function-is-by-informing-the-public/) [Robert F. Kennedy, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-f-kennedy-jr/) > [We need to remind our core supporters that we have not forgotten their concern with the way our democracy is being replaced by European…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-redwood/we-need-to-remind-our-core-supporters-that-we-have-not-forgotten/) [John Redwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-redwood/) > [So I think that if we want to have a Congress, if we want to have government that looks like America, if we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-moseley-braun/so-i-think-that-if-we-want-to-have-a-congress-if-we-want-to-have/) [Carol Moseley Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-moseley-braun/) ## More by Joseph Pulitzer > [An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/an-able-disinterested-public-spirited-press-with-trained-intelligence/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I will always fight for progress and reform, never tolerate injustice or corruption, always fight demagogues of all parties, never belong to any party,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-will-always-fight-for-progress-and-reform-never-tolerate-injustice/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [A cynical, mercenary, demagogic press will produce in time a people as base as itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/a-cynical-mercenary-demagogic-press-will-produce-in-time-a-people-as/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I am deeply interested in the progress and elevation of journalism, having spent my life in that profession, regarding it as a noble profession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-am-deeply-interested-in-the-progress-and-elevation-of-journalism/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [Don't be sensitive if I should, in future, seem brusque, harsh, or even unjust in my criticism. I sincerely hope I never shall be;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/don-t-be-sensitive-if-i-should-in-future-seem-brusque-harsh-or-even/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I breakfast when I get up, lunch when I get the chance. If I never get it, I forget it. Sometimes I dine at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-breakfast-when-i-get-up-lunch-when-i-get-the-chance-if-i-never-get/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [It is to such men as Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson and Jackson and Franklin, all most lowly born, that we owe most of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/it-is-to-such-men-as-abraham-lincoln-and-jefferson-and-jackson-and/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I desire to assist in attracting to this profession young men of character and ability, also to help those already engaged in the profession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-desire-to-assist-in-attracting-to-this-profession-young-men-of/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [My especial object is to help the poor; the rich can help themselves. I believe in self-made men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/my-especial-object-is-to-help-the-poor-the-rich-can-help-themselves-i/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I want to talk to a nation, not to a select committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-want-to-talk-to-a-nation-not-to-a-select-committee/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [I really think one of the most extraordinary things in the world is the amount of noise a child can make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-really-think-one-of-the-most-extraordinary-things-in-the-world-is/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [Our republic and its press will rise and fall together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/our-republic-and-its-press-will-rise-and-fall-together/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [Performance is better than promise. Exuberant assurances are cheap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/performance-is-better-than-promise-exuberant-assurances-are-cheap/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [They call me the father of illustrated journalism. What folly! I never thought any such thing. I had a small newspaper, which had been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/they-call-me-the-father-of-illustrated-journalism-what-folly-i-never/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [It only serves to show what sort of person a man must be who can't even get testimonials. No, no; if a man brings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/it-only-serves-to-show-what-sort-of-person-a-man-must-be-who-can-t/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) [Explore all 42 Joseph Pulitzer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) ## More Democracy quotes > [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [For not only every democracy, but certainly every republic, bears within itself the seeds of its own destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-not-only-every-democracy-but-certainly-every-republic-bears/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [There is plenty of time for Republicans to have a Macaca moment. But right now, as of October 17, 2014, the Republican Senate candidates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-continetti/there-is-plenty-of-time-for-republicans-to-have-a-macaca-moment-but/) [Matthew Continetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-continetti/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [ Vote for Donald Trump. You're going to see something and you'll be so happy, you'll be so thrilled. This \[presidential\] election is about every… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/vote-for-donald-trump-you-re-going-to-see-something-and-you-ll-be-so/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-peaceful-transition-of-power-is-one-of-the-hallmarks-of-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The Republicans do not look on the Democrats as the evil empire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-republicans-do-not-look-on-the-democrats-as-the-evil-empire/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Failure to find a way to incorporate political Islam in democracy, however uncomfortable its ideology is for secular liberals, will mean we have given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crispin-blunt/failure-to-find-a-way-to-incorporate-political-islam-in-democracy/) [Crispin Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crispin-blunt/) > [In a democratic nation, power must be linked with responsibility, and obliged to defend and justify itself within the framework of the general good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/in-a-democratic-nation-power-must-be-linked-with-responsibility-and/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. 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