The media rely heavily on the criminal justice system to give them material. They take great interest in investigating its workings and the way it impinges on individuals. Many conflicts between the system and the press arise because criminal justice professionals do not recognize that this is a central, not a peripheral, relationship. The media are not just commercial 'spin-offs' from the activities of public servants but are the machine which tells the public what government means and the governors what the public wants. If more criminal justice professionals recognized this argument, the case for freedom of information legislation would be won. As it is, despite some shifts in boundaries, secrecy still holds sway. Two references are cited. (Author summary modified)