Sarah Palin has admitted that she reads mainstream media such as The New York Times and The Economist. Does that mean she respects the role of the media and silly old traditions like the First Amendment? It all depends on how you parse opaque statements, some of which sound like she's tapping into her inner Dick Cheney.

Here she is in an interview with Carl Cameron of Fox News. First she asked, after admitting she read leading newspapers, "that the media tries a little bit harder also. And that this is a two-way street, that there is fairness, just objectivity and fairness and truth. That's all Americans ask for."

Asked by Cameron to explain herself about fairness and objectivity (somewhat rich, coming from a Fox News reporter), Palin had this to say:

"As we send our young men and women overseas in a war zone to fight for democracy and freedoms, including freedom of the press, we've really got to have a mutually beneficial relationship here with those fighting the freedom of the press, and then the press, though not taking advantage and exploiting a situation, perhaps they would want to capture and abuse the privilege. We just want truth, we want fairness, we want balance."

Feel better?