--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think being a liberal, in the true…" description: "\"“I think being a liberal, in the true sense, is being nondoctrinaire, nondogmatic, non-committed to a cause - but examining each case on its merits. Be..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/walter-cronkite-1759_dogma_i-think-being-a-liberal-in-the-true-sens_718716.png" --- # I think being a liberal, in the true sense, is being… ![“I think being a liberal, in the true sense, is being nondoctrinaire, nondogmatic, non-committed to a cause - but examining each case on its merits. Being left of center is another thing; it's a political position. I think most newspapermen by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal…” quote by Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/walter-cronkite-1759_dogma_i-think-being-a-liberal-in-the-true-sens_718716.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/walter-cronkite-1759_dogma_i-think-being-a-liberal-in-the-true-sens_718716.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/walter-cronkite-1759_dogma_i-think-being-a-liberal-in-the-true-sens_718716.png) > ““I think being a liberal, in the true sense, is being nondoctrinaire, nondogmatic, non-committed to a cause - but examining each case on its merits. Being left of center is another thing; it's a political position. I think most newspapermen by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal, by my definition of it, then they can hardly be good newspapermen. If they're preordained dogmatists for a cause, then they can't be very good journalists; that is, if they carry it into their journalism." \[Interview with Ron Powers ( Chicago Sun Times ) for Playboy , 1973\]”” [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker defines liberalism as open‑minded, case‑by‑case analysis, contrasting it with dogmatic partisanship, and argues journalists should be liberal to remain unbiased. **In simple terms:** Liberalism means evaluating each issue independently. Key Takeaway Stay open, avoid dogma. Themes journalism politics open‑mindedness Mood analytical critical Type philosophical professional When to use this quote - news reporting - editorial decisions - public discourse - media ethics Key Concepts critical thinking ethical standards objectivity Questions to Reflect On - Can a journalist be truly neutral? - How do personal beliefs affect coverage? A Different Perspective Rigid partisanship may still influence reporting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dogma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dogma/) [Good news](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-news/) [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Liberal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberal/) [Liberalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberalism/) [Objectivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/objectivity/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [I think that being liberal, in the true sense, is being nondoctrinaire, nondogmatic, noncomitted to a cause but examining each case on its merits.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-think-that-being-liberal-in-the-true-sense-is-being-nondoctrinaire/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I think most newspapermen by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal, by definition of it, then they can hardly be good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-think-most-newspapermen-by-definition-have-to-be-liberal-if-they-re/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I have a liberal definition of news because I think news can be what excites people. I'm not very sanctimonious about what news is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-sawyer/i-have-a-liberal-definition-of-news-because-i-think-news-can-be-what/) [Diane Sawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-sawyer/) > [There's the great line: the definition of a liberal is someone who's afraid to take their own side in a fight. And that's my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-begala/there-s-the-great-line-the-definition-of-a-liberal-is-someone-who-s/) [Paul Begala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-begala/) > [I'm a liberal arts comedian and the definition of liberal arts is all spheres of human knowledge, coexisting, mixing and influencing each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-conover/i-m-a-liberal-arts-comedian-and-the-definition-of-liberal-arts-is-all/) [Adam Conover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-conover/) > [I think that there's a liberal element out there that finds me not acceptable. They don't like my stance on a lot of issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-brewer/i-think-that-there-s-a-liberal-element-out-there-that-finds-me-not/) [Jan Brewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-brewer/) > [ I wonder if it's conservative or liberal \[ inalienable rights idea\], because when we think of liberal thought, when we think about the relation… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/i-wonder-if-it-s-conservative-or-liberal-inalienable-rights-idea/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [That man, I think, has had a liberal education, who has been so trained in youth that his body is the ready servant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/that-man-i-think-has-had-a-liberal-education-who-has-been-so-trained/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Now whatever you think of the liberal agenda on its merits, until very recently nobody thought the Constitution meant what liberals now say it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/now-whatever-you-think-of-the-liberal-agenda-on-its-merits-until-very/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [I think that this liberal progressive agenda is not the thing that the American people want and it's antithesis to who we are as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/i-think-that-this-liberal-progressive-agenda-is-not-the-thing-that/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) > [I think if you're a liberal, you believe that we all are, at least to some extent, our brothers' keepers, you really believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/i-think-if-you-re-a-liberal-you-believe-that-we-all-are-at-least-to/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [If riches increase, let thy mind hold pace with them; and think it not enough to be liberal, but munificent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-browne/if-riches-increase-let-thy-mind-hold-pace-with-them-and-think-it-not/) [Thomas Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-browne/) > [I think that liberal straight white men really need to stop patting themselves on the back for what they think they think and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-gelman/i-think-that-liberal-straight-white-men-really-need-to-stop-patting/) [Brett Gelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-gelman/) > [I really think that the Liberal Party is dead and that one will simply have to think of men and policies after the war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hamilton-gordon-1st-marquess-of-aberdeen-and-temair/i-really-think-that-the-liberal-party-is-dead-and-that-one-will/) John Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair > [I think liberal art faculties at major universities have views that are not very sound, at least on public policy issues - they may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/i-think-liberal-art-faculties-at-major-universities-have-views-that/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) ## More by Walter Cronkite > [I'm a liberal, but I'm not biased. Seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-m-a-liberal-but-i-m-not-biased-seriously/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I've gone from the most trusted man in America to one of the most debated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-ve-gone-from-the-most-trusted-man-in-america-to-one-of-the-most/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I do think that the success, although still not complete... in the recognition of equal rights... to all Americans, regardless of color, creed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-do-think-that-the-success-although-still-not-complete-in-the/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [Be kind to an old man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/be-kind-to-an-old-man/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I learned early on that in the real world, the masks of tragedy and comedy adorn the proscenium of every life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-learned-early-on-that-in-the-real-world-the-masks-of-tragedy-and/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [It is clear that military force and our policy of preemption are alone insufficient to make us safe. But help is on the way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/it-is-clear-that-military-force-and-our-policy-of-preemption-are/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [In all my years as a news commentator I was never once, able to tell the truth, about anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/in-all-my-years-as-a-news-commentator-i-was-never-once-able-to-tell/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I think people make way too much of ratings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-think-people-make-way-too-much-of-ratings/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I grew my mustache when I was nineteen in order to look older. I never shaved it off even though it overran its usefulness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-grew-my-mustache-when-i-was-nineteen-in-order-to-look-older-i-never/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [I'm so tired of stories starting, 'Maud Jones was walking her dog down Broadway.' You've got to go over to the back page somewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-m-so-tired-of-stories-starting-maud-jones-was-walking-her-dog-down/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [All through my life, I have never disguised my sentiments about politics in general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/all-through-my-life-i-have-never-disguised-my-sentiments-about/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [The battle for the airwaves cannot be limited to only those who have the bank accounts to pay for the battle and win it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/the-battle-for-the-airwaves-cannot-be-limited-to-only-those-who-have/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [The successful landing on the moon, very probably, is the best story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/the-successful-landing-on-the-moon-very-probably-is-the-best-story/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [If, as they say, the threat of the hangman's noose has a powerful way of focusing one's attention, the same can be said of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/if-as-they-say-the-threat-of-the-hangman-s-noose-has-a-powerful-way/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) > [We must strengthen the United Nations as a first step toward a World Government, patterned after our Own Government with a legislature, executive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/we-must-strengthen-the-united-nations-as-a-first-step-toward-a-world/) [Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) [Explore all 210 Walter Cronkite quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/) ## More Dogma quotes > [“The characteristics of this kind of reading are perhaps summed up in the word “orthodox,” which is almost always applicable. The word comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-j-adler/the-characteristics-of-this-kind-of-reading-are-perhaps-summed-up-in/) [Mortimer J. Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-j-adler/) > [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [Dogma is a powerful way of closing human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-marley/dogma-is-a-powerful-way-of-closing-human-mind/) [Peter Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-marley/) > [How shall freedom be defended? By arms when it is attacked by arms, by truth when it is attacked by lies, by faith when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/how-shall-freedom-be-defended-by-arms-when-it-is-attacked-by-arms-by/) [Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/) > [fear has always been a diminisher of life. Whether bred in the bogs of superstition or clothed in the brocades of dogma and ritual,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/fear-has-always-been-a-diminisher-of-life-whether-bred-in-the-bogs-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [My rap comes from a sociological standpoint rather than picking a particular side or dogma or ideology. I just want people to be free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/my-rap-comes-from-a-sociological-standpoint-rather-than-picking-a/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [I reject the idea there are just two sides. I think that with the amount of ideas and thoughts there are, it's not even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/i-reject-the-idea-there-are-just-two-sides-i-think-that-with-the/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [ “\[H\]e was damned if he was going to water down his arguments simply to satisfy the preference of the mob for dogma and ignorance.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elton/h-e-was-damned-if-he-was-going-to-water-down-his-arguments-simply-to/) [Ben Elton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elton/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [A building is akin to dogma; it is insolent, like dogma. Whether or no it is permanent, it claims permanence, like a dogma. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/a-building-is-akin-to-dogma-it-is-insolent-like-dogma-whether-or-no/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Every well-thought-out rebuttal to dogma, every scrap of intelligent logic, every absurdist reduction of some bullying stance is the antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sanders/every-well-thought-out-rebuttal-to-dogma-every-scrap-of-intelligent/) [George Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sanders/) > [“Humans are capable of having transcendent, transformative experiences in the absence of any given dogma. We are capable of sustaining elaborate systems of false…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-w-loftus/humans-are-capable-of-having-transcendent-transformative-experiences/) John W. Loftus > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization. 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Being left of center is another thing; it's a political position. I think most newspapermen by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal, by my definition of it, then they can hardly be good newspapermen. 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