Has Censorship Returned To Haywood County's News Outlets - Just Asking

Why Did The Mountaineer Reject Janet Presson's Guest Column?

A rejected guest column can feel like a closed door, especially when the subject comes from lived experience, professional training, and years of public concern. This is what Janet Presson has recently experienced over an article she wrote for publication in the Mountaineer News.

When the topic is vaccine safety, that door often closes for reasons that have less to do with the writer’s character and experience in the topic, and more to do with the newspaper’s ideology.

It is understood that a person. such as Janet, can write in good faith and still submit a column an editor sees as unsafe to publish. A newspaper can reject a column without claiming the writer is dishonest, uninformed, or malicious. Both things can be true at the same time.

However, the article written and submitted to the Mountaineer News for publication by Janet Presson was clearly informational only. It was not medical advice, legal advice, or a substitute for guidance from a qualified health professional despite the fact that Janet is a retired RN, with 30 plus years as an RN and the mother of a young man who was injured by his childhood vaccines.

The article that Janet wrote and submitted to the Mountaineer News was written as a counterpoint to an article the Mountaineer had published regarding MMR Vaccines written by a retired Haywood County Public Health Director. That article, in Janet's opinion, based on her above mentioned professional and personal experiences, left her and many readers confused because that article was a myriad of liberal talking points as opposed to actual facts supported by professionally supported citations.

The editor’s response, in plain terms, said the paper would not run a guest column that promoted behavior it considered harmful to human welfare and safety. That is a serious statement. It is also broad.

The most frustrating part is the lack of specifics. A writer deserves to know what crossed the line, especially if the newspaper has published that writer before. Was there a sentence the editor thought discouraged vaccination? Was there a claim that lacked citation? Was the problem the overall tone? Was the column judged as medical advice rather than commentary?

Without a clear answer, the rejection can feel like a label rather than an editorial decision.

A parent’s account of a child’s injury deserves compassion. A nurse’s concern deserves to be heard with respect. Lived experience can reveal blind spots that institutions miss. Many changes in medicine began because patients or clinicians noticed patterns and refused to stay quiet.

A rejection, such as Janet experienced with the Mountaineer News, that says only “promoting behavior that is harmful to human welfare and safety” does not help a writer revise. It leaves too much room for confusion and resentment. If the paper wants to uphold a policy, it should be able to point to the section, claim, or implication that triggered the policy. They should be able and willing to respond to Janet's request for clarification on the reason for rejection by identifying:

• Which sentence or claim raised the welfare and safety concern?

• If there specific standards for health-related guest columns?

• Whether the policy applies to all vaccine commentary or only to certain claims?

  
  

That kind of response keeps the exchange professional. It also makes it harder for the paper to rely on a vague dismissal.

A newspaper may still say no. It has that right. But a clear explanation would show respect for the writer and the readers.

So, why was the guest column rejected?

That lack of detail from Becky Johnson on behalf of the Mountaineer is a problem. A writer asking in good faith deserves a clearer answer.

Here is the article that Janet wrote and was censored because it was: “promoting behavior that is harmful to human welfare and safety”. Read it. Do you see anything in that article that you would deem harmful to human welfare and safety.

If not, then share this post with your family, neighbors, and friends so they are aware of the censorship that is being imposed on certain topics or writers by the Mountaineer News outlet. Further, and most important, contact the Mountaineer. Let them know that you are not comfortable with their censoring an article that would have been a beneficial counterpoint to the information previously published by their newspaper, had they had the opportunity to read it. Janet Presson's article follows:

MMR Vaccine Counterpoint

 Janet Presson

I was both confused and amused by the recent guest column regarding the MMR vaccine.  It was written by the retired Haywood County Public Health Director and contained a myriad of media talking points and propaganda.  As an RN of 30+ years and the mother of a young man who was brain injured by his vaccines at 15 months, I am SO tired of the misinformation and gaslighting by our public health officials and media “experts” who are lying to us and calling it established science!

The Covid “pandemic” did a beautiful job of revealing this system, and if you haven’t paid attention, let me remind you:  CDC, FDA, DHHS, Dr. Fauci, and other “experts” have now admitted that the vaccines did NOT prevent the virus or  prevent transmission of the virus, six feet of separation, masking, shutting down businesses, schools, and churches were all ineffective and basically had NO science supporting any of these things that were supposed to save us all.  Ventilators and remdesivir caused a huge number of deaths instead of saving lives, and waiting to treat until the patient was turning blue was apparently the wrong course of action despite it being pushed throughout the country!  The public was told that the only way to survive Covid and to stop the pandemic was for everyone in the world to take the vaccine and multiple boosters!  Again, this was nothing but a lie and caused enormous harm to the public’s trust in our healthcare system and professionals.  

Mr. Johnson cited accurate measles case rates that match what is currently listed on the CDC’s website, with the exception of deaths.  The CDC states that there have been NO verified measles deaths in the US in 2026.  However, what he didn’t include is far more important.  When you look at the number of cases for 2025 (2289) and 2026 (3294), you also need to look at how many of those cases were vaccinated versus how many were unvaccinated.  This is where the CDC’s data becomes almost worthless.  For those 2 years, patients who had either 1 or 2 doses of the measles vaccine were 3 or 4%  but for 93 and 95% of patients, they were categorized as either “Unvaccinated or Unknown!” That means that every one of those cases could have been completely vaccinated! That is critical information when you understand that recently vaccinated individuals can shed the virus and spread the illness.  While we’ve known this for years, a new systematic review and meta-analysis published August 14, 2026 in the peer-reviewed medical journal “Expert Review of Vaccines” confirmed that people who have received measles-containing vaccines can become infected with measles and transmit the infection to others, contributing to measles outbreaks around the world. The shaming and blaming of measles outbreaks on the unvaccinated clearly is misguided and needs to end!  It is NOT based on science, and the CDC’s own data demonstrates that!

For the last thirty years or so, our government health organizations, pediatricians, public health officials, and the media have basically told us that the only way to protect ourselves from illness and disease is by vaccinating against everything possible.  They have ignored injuries and deaths caused by the vaccines and have gaslighted people (including physicians and RNs) who made that claim. Did you know that 1) Not a single vaccine on the Recommended Childhood Schedule has been safety tested against a true placebo, 2) Vaccines contain known neurotoxins, carcinogens, aborted fetal material, animal RNA/DNA, and other toxic chemicals, 3) Pharmaceutical companies are protected from any liability if their vaccines injure or kill. However, they are liable for harm caused by any of their other products.  Vaccines are treated as a magic unicorn that couldn’t possibly cause harm! 

The population of the US is almost 350 million people.  We need to ask ourselves why our health officials make such a big deal about measles.  Measles is typically a mild childhood illness that consists of cold symptoms and a rash, and before 1963, when the vaccine came on the market, almost everyone got measles and it was no big deal!  While every death is a tragedy and a loss, a few measles deaths per year do not warrant the headlines and fear-mongering that we are subjected to.  There is a very clear agenda that needs to end, and the best way to stop it in its tracks is to stop giving it attention.  According to the New England Journal of Medicine, the leading causes of death in children in the US are: firearm-related injury, motor vehicle collision, poisoning, suffocation, and drowning.  Measles isn’t remotely close to being on this list!  

Vaccines will NEVER give us health!  That was very clear during COVID and continues to be seen in vaccinated versus unvaccinated  studies.  There have been about a dozen of these, and in every single study, the unvaccinated children were significantly healthier than the vaccinated children!  Instead of relying on the quick and easy vaccine, people need to eat healthy and organic whenever possible, exercise in fresh air and sunshine, get quality sleep, limit screen time, and practice frequent handwashing!  Those practices will make more of a difference than a vaccine ever will!

Janet Presson, R.N., M.Ed.

The "Informed Citizen" is a Judeo-Christian conservative blog and website dedicated to providing information on our Constitution and the country's governance, enabling you, the voter, to make informed decisions at the ballot box.

 If you are interested in participating in Zoom classes to learn about our Constitution, what the Constitution actually states, the meaning behind the Articles, the history behind its creation, along with informational conversations, please visit americaninsanity.org  and subscribe to “The Informed Citizen.” 

Together, our voices as Judeo-Christian conservatives will resonate more powerfully than ever.

Please share this post with your contacts. Everyone needs to be an informed citizen so they, too, can better understand our Constitution, what our elected officials are doing to support or abuse it, and thereby make informed decisions at the ballot box.

Neither the “Informed Citizen” Blog nor I, the editor and owner of this blog, am in any way affiliated with or speak on behalf of any political party or individual. What is posted are researched facts or, when appropriate, identified as being "My Opinion."