"They can say I have an opinion about something"
About this Quote
The line lands like a shrug and a boundary at once. Dan Abrams, a lawyer turned journalist and media entrepreneur, has spent years in roles where analysis is part of the job description. From legal commentary to running outlets that cover media and the courts, he lives in a space where audiences expect interpretation, not just transcription. Saying, They can say I have an opinion about something, stakes out a principle: transparency about perspective is acceptable, even inevitable, so long as the underlying work is grounded in verifiable facts.
That stance pushes against an older newsroom ideal that equated neutrality with virtue. Abrams reflects a newer ethic of candor, where the test is not whether a voice is perfectly even but whether it is accurate, fair, and evidence-based. Viewers and readers know that legal analysis involves judgment calls. What they cannot abide is sloppiness with the record or a willingness to bend facts to fit a narrative. By conceding the presence of opinion, he invites audiences to scrutinize the reasoning rather than pretend it does not exist.
There is also a pragmatic reading tied to the modern media economy. Cable news, social platforms, and niche outlets reward distinct voices. Trying to erase opinion can ring false; owning it, while drawing a hard line at factual rigor, can build trust. The sentiment implicitly rebukes bad-faith criticism that labels any unwelcome conclusion as bias. Disagreement is fair game; alleging dishonesty is not.
For a legal analyst especially, this boundary mirrors courtroom practice: arguments are persuasive only when tethered to the evidentiary record. The message to critics and consumers alike is simple. Hold the commentator accountable, but do so on the terrain that matters most. Call out the opinion if you will; the nonnegotiable is whether the facts withstand scrutiny. In a polarized landscape, that is a modest, and vital, claim.
That stance pushes against an older newsroom ideal that equated neutrality with virtue. Abrams reflects a newer ethic of candor, where the test is not whether a voice is perfectly even but whether it is accurate, fair, and evidence-based. Viewers and readers know that legal analysis involves judgment calls. What they cannot abide is sloppiness with the record or a willingness to bend facts to fit a narrative. By conceding the presence of opinion, he invites audiences to scrutinize the reasoning rather than pretend it does not exist.
There is also a pragmatic reading tied to the modern media economy. Cable news, social platforms, and niche outlets reward distinct voices. Trying to erase opinion can ring false; owning it, while drawing a hard line at factual rigor, can build trust. The sentiment implicitly rebukes bad-faith criticism that labels any unwelcome conclusion as bias. Disagreement is fair game; alleging dishonesty is not.
For a legal analyst especially, this boundary mirrors courtroom practice: arguments are persuasive only when tethered to the evidentiary record. The message to critics and consumers alike is simple. Hold the commentator accountable, but do so on the terrain that matters most. Call out the opinion if you will; the nonnegotiable is whether the facts withstand scrutiny. In a polarized landscape, that is a modest, and vital, claim.
Quote Details
| Topic | Freedom |
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