On Friday, our nation’s newest president let his temper get the best of him, again.

First he accused several top tier news agencies of releasing what he calls “fake news.” Then, using that accusation as an excuse, Trump’s Press Secretary Sean Spicer barred those agencies from attending a briefing that day.

Outside of condemnation of his decision, an air of concern looms.

The news agencies barred from Friday’s briefing are not known for issuing headlines that read “Batboy loose in New York.” These agencies carry a lot of weight when it comes to reporting the news, accurately.

Trump’s accusation that the stories were “fake” was due in part to the use of anonymous sources in those stories.

While I do everything to avoid using anonymous sources, there are times when news agencies covering certain occurrences in our nation have to protect their source due to the potential repercussions, such as that source being arrested, or worse.

That is why our founding fathers established a right to a free press here in America, to keep the public informed and avoid the establishment of a dictatorship.

Not so the media can “make stuff up.”

With that right comes a level of responsibility to present those facts objectively  and let the reader come to his or her own opinion.

When the press is denied access to facts, then a situation of control is being bred that can’t foster the continuation of a free society.

If, in fact, any news agency released a story laden with inaccuracies or outright lies, the correct action is to set the record straight.

While the Trump administration counters that Friday’s incident is not an indication of things to come, the proof is yet to come.

Our president has a lot to learn.

I just hope one of his first lessons is there is a continued need for a free press, even if he doesn’t like the headlines.