Jennifer Granholm on Trump: 'We should all be alarmed if there is no transparency'

Former Governor of Michigan Jennifer Granholm was on CNN correspondent Van Jones' show "The Messy Truth" Wednesday evening to discuss a slew of topics ranging from gun violence in Chicago to Obama's legacy. One topic however struck a cord with us in the newsroom: the role of the media during the Trump administration.

A guest from the audience asked Granholm how Trump's relationship with the media will affect how American's search for the truth for the next 4 years.

In case you missed it, President-elect Trump held his first press conference since July on Wednesday afternoon and he got into a heated exchange with CNN reporter Jim Acosta. Trump told Acosta that CNN was "fake news" while Acosta questioned Trump. You can read a very fleshed out report from The New York Times here that explains why Trump thinks CNN is "fake news." 

Granholm's response to the question was very simple and clear: "We should all be alarmed if there is no transparency."

Granholm said there is an "effort to create an alternative channel of media to define what media is good and what media is bad by the incoming Trump administration." She goes on to talk about how the media is an "arm of democracy" and how Trump still needs to release his tax returns.

The entire clip is worth a watch, but the question about the media gets brought up at the 5:40 mark.

Granholm finishes her remarks up by saying that the media needs access so that the public can stay informed. If the media is not allowed to question Trump and make him a transparent figure, then what is the point of the media at all?