Donald Trump is truly the antithesis of what Americans are used to seeing in the White House.

Rather than carefully crafted responses vetted for accuracy and tact, we have seen our president both praise and attack via unedited and sometimes indelicate tweets.

Rather than witnessing a draining of the swamp, we’re seeing a parade of Washington insiders being appointed to key cabinet positions with virtually no understanding of what their new jobs entail.

And it was disconcerting to witness a president on live TV punish the news organization CNN for reporting on a story he didn’t like, calling the network “fake news.” Even worse were the administration’s false claims about the size of the inauguration, which were only compounded by Trump counselor Kellyanne Conway’s later comments concerning the presentation of “alternative facts.”

Meanwhile, we have no idea what financial entanglements the new president might have, or whether there exist conflicts of interest with investors or foreign governments. Right now, Trump supporters don’t care. They are thrilled to have a voice, one that they believe speaks to them and for them.

Whether Trump’s decidedly untraditional approach to the nation’s top job is the wave of the future or a failed gamble by those who voted for him is to be determined. What is clear is that the role of mainstream media will be tested by Trump, his administration and by those who voted him into office.

Newspapers and the major TV news networks will be inviting bitter tweets, public shaming or even the prospect of being expelled from the White House if a story displeases our new commander-in-chief.

The idea that a free press is threatening to the new president raises red flags.

Newspapers first became a political force in the campaign for American independence. The First Amendment to our Constitution guarantees freedom of the press because the framers recognized the importance of keeping government and government officials accountable.

Just as members of the media have their job, so does the American public.

Information is power. Reading newspapers, paying attention to the news and staying informed is critical to maintaining the balance of power that has held this nation together through incredible tests of democracy.

Fake news has had its day. It’s time now to bring newspapers back into the sunlight and give them the teeth to do the work protected under the Constitution.