Free Press

* See also Newspapers_and_Magazines
* See also Headlines
* See also Stanley Poole
* See also The_Phoenix
Rapture having a Free Press was one of the important elements in Ryan's Objectivist-Philosophy-based Society. ( "Let The Buyer Beware", but then also "LET THE BUYER BE INFORMED" is the balancing aspect. AND there are different points of view, which is useful for all to be able to know through the distribution of those ideas/position, BECAUSE Society is based on compromises and mutual agreement. ). 
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Free Press 'Said To Be There' Would Have Broken The Gamewriters Story :
I've had arguments with certain Fanbois when making my assertion that : So Much was 'covered up'/avoided/omitted in the game's Story by the game-writers so that they could create their 'tyranny' setting to foist their 'Plot Twist'. 
That narrative would NOT be logically possible when Rapture had its Free Press operating within the gamewriter defined Objectivist Society ( which the writers SAID was there for their whole philosophical dystopic setting ). The Suppression of the Free Press by Ryan is their argument. I counter that : Fontaine's ADAM's nasty side effects would have been detected quite early, and would be WELL COVERED by the Competing Free Press quite early. IF, with the alleged Ryan rivalry with Fontaine being there, THEN Ryan WOULD NOT cover the ADAM-Poison up.
PLUS such disclosure would have created a major NEGATIVE opinion held by the majority of Rapture's population ( Who WOULD AVOID it : Cancer ... Insanity ... versus dubious benefits ), and thus it would Eliminate that story meteoric rise of Fontaine's Ryan-rivaling wealth/influence/power in Rapture ( and thus torpedoing the whole plot/setting/backstory ). 
This argument got the typical Fanboi reaction of illogical denial and name-calling typical of that breed, who just kept repeating their mis-assumptions about Ryan's Rapture society supposedly being tyrannized all along its History - INSTEAD of that "Press Suppression" happening ONLY when the Survival-threatening Chaos started, and Ryan had to ( through his War Measures ) save Rapture from the Terrorists. 
Major logical Point : IF Ryan ( supposedly being as "hypocritical" as the writers attempt to smear him ) had earnestly acted to destroy his rival Fontaine ( ie- like going so far as to murder/execute him which they vaguely imply in the plot ), THEN Ryan would have used his alleged 'controlled press' immediately to labeled/denounced Fontaine as 'a Poisoner' AND had him shut down as soon as Fontaine started having success. BUT this 'So Evil' and "hypocritical" Ryan ( who actually Believed in Free Competition ), obviously DID NOT DO THIS - When he so easily could have destroyed this 'rival'. 
AND if the fanboi counter then was : Fontaine was 'suppressing the press'/covering the negative side effects up ( through criminal intimidation ) : That EVEN JUST the Newspapers/Press Ryan controlled/protected/owned COULD HAVE done enough harm validly exposing ( and thus smearing ) Fontaine's ADAM business as a public menace ( and then The Buyers WOULD BE Aware ... ) 
My logic that even the HINT of CANCER and INSANITY and DISFIGUREMENT would have Citizens ( when they found out ) avoiding ADAM 'like the plague' has little impact on fanboi fanaticism about story details. 
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 "If It Bleeds, It Leads" (TV News Saying) :
So Splicer Insanity/Violence of ANY KIND would be quickly in the Rapture News Watchers attention. So either : You cannot have all the DLC/Novel early violence in Rapture, *OR* have a 'Covering It Up' as Ryan holding to his Philosophy Detractors might claim. 
You really can't trust game writers to adhere to such logic or consistency.
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Chicken-Little-ism Sells Newspapers ( Especially When Hints are Heard Everywhere ) :
This is why Rapture WOULD have heard about the bad ADAM side-effects as soon as they started happening. The press could NOT keep away from it ( competing for stories, and some of them having reputations for largely telling the truth, while other's sensationalism would put the Citizenry on their guard ). And if Fontaine started/attempted threatening/intimidating them in any serious ways, at least the ones Ryan had an interest in would hear about it, and would have HIS backing to make public and counter those threats -- Especially once Fontaine was getting more and more on Ryan's shit-list ( definitely once Sullivan's investigation found Fontaine being behind the City's major Smuggling ). 
Having ADAM products physically and mentally maim Citizens would be something Ryan would Have Exposed ( One important component of the "Let the Buyer Beware" philosophy is : having a Free Press to let the consumer 'be aware' ).
SO, the original game's plot is merely a fabrication to allow the Fontaine's/Atlas characters getting to where they are, WHILE ignoring plausible CONSISTENT realism. They could have written it more logically if they had bothered. A task for the MMORPG is to rewrite/append-to those previous vague/spotty accounts ( which the ADAM_Addled Player encountered ), and to correct/fill in a more plausible history to create a similar situation. 
The game's Chronic Vagueness, the lazy/easy storytelling, DOES leave so many details missing/open, and THAT offers The MMORPG the potential for telling the tale properly.
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Contrivance :
They ( the writers of the story ) made sure that ADAM's negative effects did NOT come to significant Citizen notice BEFORE the %27civil war%27 so happened, OR it would have spoiled their 'sudden ADAM' narrative plot sequencing. Their Twist faciltation required that Ryan 'catches all the blame' for 'pushing ADAM, and after 'Seizing' ( confiscating Fontaine's Crime-supported ADAM Company AND perhaps everything else for Restitution to the Victims ... ) implying he is a hypocrite and doesn't follow his Philosophy.
But again : Don't let Real World likelihoods ("way things work") interfere with the plot, nor by any conflicting story facts. 
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Solution : Free Press - How Things Are Supposed To Work :
We could have, as Plasmids are 'rolled out' quite late, Rapture's Free Press then could have constant lurid stories ( ) about cases of ADAM Insanity, and ADAM caused Disfigurement, which would have dissuaded ( scared the hell out of ) huge numbers of Citizens out of EVER using ADAM, and even labeling Fontaine as a Poisoner - as a seller of defective products ( with horrified relatives of victims "gunning for him", etc ... ).
That would be LATE, when the earlier Tonics were far less damaging ( and ADAM medical therapies being far more controlled ). Early abusers like Sander Cohen might not be recorded so much, with some being really no worse than self-destructive abusers of the also legal drugs.
The City Emergency, as Fonataine turns to Terrorism, is a scenario where citizens might be desperate enough to take ADAM/Plasmids to protect themselves. The miscreants Atlas would give ADAM to would simply be addicts. With the overpowering abilities, the Chaos and destruction can still happen. 
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Photo-Johnny : A Caricature of Peter Lorre, Who Plays a New Secondary Character : 
Used for a narrative character in New Rapture ( game mechanism for scenarios ) who can comment in depth about things that happened in the expanded Rapture histories ( through Audio Diaries, Photos, Newspapers_and_Magazines Articles to be found by the Players ).
Has a stereotype character ( as being different from Stanley Poole )
Also have One or more 'known' NPCs scurrying around New Rapture being 'Reporters', who despite the great decrease in (already limited) readership and a decline of Rapture's Newspapers, were still working ( THE People need distractions AND to be informed ).
These 'Reporters' would ask you questions about your Adventures or Projects that can appear in their local rags (Newspapers/Bulletins). No doubt, if you are running some kind of business, those paper's advertising agent will contact you to see if you will advertise in their 'Paper' ( They do expect to be paid for that Service as they are NOT a charity, you know. )
Some reporters mutter about joining that TV News thing ( ?? a second Job 'to make ends meet' ... )
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Newspapers Blowing About At Your Feet
Apparently there is lots of old newsprint laying about Rapture which can be recycled for NEW newspapers. Of course they will be gleaned for useful information ( or be 'so ruined' as to be useless for that ). Soggy lumps of trash newspaper might still be read. Paper Mache (also) is a useful material ...
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With Numerous Venues of Free Press :
They (gamewriters/fanbois) cannot have the excuse that 'Fontaine Bribed Them All' to cover up/hide/avoid Fontaine's problematic (addictive/insanity-producing) ADAM Plasmids/Tonics, and his criminal Abuse of Children, his fake Orphanages, the thuggery/exploitation of his employees, etc ...
One (whistleblower) only need go to Ryan IF violent Coercion was threatened by Fontaine ( and such criminality was 'Dirty Pool' in Ryan's Philosophy and the societal norm of Rapture ). Such Bribery/Coercion Story itself would be a 'Big Scoop' ( story of the year ), and would soon be published/exposed and known by all. Ryan's own media outlets would be Very Hard to silence.
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