Question

What does “democracy dies in darkness” mean?

Answer 1

Democracy Dies in Darkness is the motto by Washington Post, a media company that focuses on news and journalism across the globe.

The main meaning of the phrase draws a parallel to the idea of light and darkness with the colloquial terms of knowledge and ignorance that we often use. To say that “we are in the dark” means that “we do not know” about a given subject. Now, considering that many politicians or thought leaders consider media to be the fourth pillar of democracy, they want media companies to be able to shed light into important matters and topics, inform the people and empower them so that they could make critical decision such as choosing the right government, right programmers, etc.

This is where Washington Post triggers the understanding that without media exposure and information about the world, we will be in the dark and will not be able to choose our leaders correctly and appropriately. This will lead to the death of democracy, which focuses on empowering people.