Newspaper editorial boards respond to President Trump's criticism

"The impact of Trump's assault on journalism looks different in Boise than it does in Boston," according to an email from the Boston Globe. "Our words will differ. But at least we can agree that such attacks are alarming." 

This is an unprecedented but necessary response, said Marjorie Hershey, associate chair of political science at Indiana University.

"The notion of a free press is critical to the American version of democracy," she said. "And when we have a political leader who is deliberately trying to undermine faith in that institution, the institution has to stand up for itself."

While Trump is not the first U.S. president to criticize the press, his tactics have been characterized as abuse and incitement against the First Amendment. The Boston Globe's email referred to claims Trump made in an Aug. 5 tweet as examples.