In a landmark Supreme Court ruling, New York Times Co. v. United States in 1971, the nation’s highest court defended the freedom of the press and enabled New York’s premier newspaper and The Washington Post to publish the then-classified Pentagon Papers without punishment.

Former President Richard Nixon tried to wield executive authority and prevent their reports, acting like a mad king who wanted to silence his mounting critics in newspapers that held him accountable.

We saw it again with former President Donald Trump, who tried to ban reporters and news outlets whose coverage he didn’t like. President Joe Biden has had the fewest interviews of a sitting president in decades, as his White House concealed what became painfully evident in a June 27 debate.

Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday is sitting for her first full interview with the press since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee, despite receiving requests for more than a month.

It’s increasingly common for powerful politicians and candidates to avoid the press, set parameters to try to control interviews, or only do interviews with friendly media that will ask softball questions. But that’s not transparency, accountability or journalism.

A free press should hold powerful leaders to account, regardless of political affiliation. We should be fair and accurate, fearless and work without favor, regardless of if they have an R or D by their names. We’re not here for the politicians; we’re here for the voters.

In that 1971 Supreme Court case, Justice Hugo Black put it more eloquently: “The press was to serve the governed, not the governors.” His words underscored the importance and purpose of a free press to hold government accountable and report public information.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott seems to need this reminder. His campaign to “Stop Sinclair” seems like a Freudian slip. It’s designed to fight a ballot proposal bankrolled by David Smith, executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group and principal owner of The Baltimore Sun, that would shrink the City Council from 14 seats to eight. In an effort to fight against that proposal and safeguard his own power, Scott is trying to “Stop Sinclair” and raise money in a PAC to counter the effort. Why isn’t the campaign called “Stop Smith”? He wouldn’t lose anything on alliteration. Could it be because Sinclair covers the mayor’s policies in a way he doesn’t like?

We don’t know for sure. Our questions have not been answered since we started asking last week.

The situation is a reminder that money doesn’t just talk in politics; it runs marathons. The efforts from Smith and Scott are not readily available to average voters who don’t have the means to launch and fund powerful, political committees.

And regardless of whether you like Sinclair’s news coverage, it’s concerning any time the most powerful political figure in a city targets and fights against a media outlet. Today it’s Sinclair. Who is it tomorrow? The Baltimore Sun for writing this editorial? One of the other TV stations or online news organizations that cover city government for the most important people in Baltimore politics — the voters?

If Scott has concerns about Smith’s ballot amendment, he should take it up with Smith — not Smith’s 200 TV stations and their thousands of hardworking employees.

As Smith told us last week, “Let me be absolutely clear: Sinclair has nothing to do with this ballot initiative. The only interest that Sinclair has is through its ownership of FOX45 and that station’s interest in news and investigating all things government on behalf of the community it serves.

“FOX45’s investigative journalism has always focused on holding politicians accountable, and uncovering corruption, abuse of power and waste of taxpayer money. The ballot initiative is not some scheme to consolidate power, but if the public supports it, it will be a means of reducing waste and abuse of taxpayer money, all while still ensuring that Baltimoreans have enough representation. After all, when you look at the facts, reducing the number of City Council members isn’t some outlandish idea. Take Baltimore County as just one of many examples. That county has seven council members who oversee approximately 850,000 residents and a much larger landmass, while Baltimore City has approximately 565,000 residents and a significantly smaller landmass.”

FOX45 in Baltimore should be free to practice journalism without punishment veiled as political campaigns against a company headquartered in Maryland.

As Justice Black reminded us in 1971, the Founding Fathers gave the country a gift in the First Amendment. It ensured the press was free to censure the government, while abolishing the government’s ability to censor the press. In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. It protected the press in its effort to reveal government secrets, neglect, deception, malfeasance and ineptitude.

Everything else is public relations.