CNN came under heavy backfire after publishing an op-ed by a Notre Dame professor who compared journalists to soldiers.

Joseph Holt argued in the piece which was published Friday that the press is the “protector” not  the “enemy” of the people, as President Donald Trump has remarked.

Quoting Thomas Jefferson among others, the ethics professor at the University of Notre Dame touted the “professionalism” of CNN journalists, likening members of the media to “guardian angel[s]” and “soldiers.”

“The press stands vigilantly as a bulwark against tyranny and the falsehoods that feed it,” Holt wrote. “Far from being the enemy of the people, the press at its best is like a guardian angel that caringly and capably protects us from harm.”

Holt noted the role of mainstream media is a “revealer of truths that some of those in power, for their own selfish reasons, would like to keep hidden,” ironically pointing out the “demanding code of journalistic ethics to be responsible for the accuracy and fairness of their statements.”

But it was Holt’s final comments that set off a firestorm of criticism.

“We thank soldiers for their service because they devote themselves to protecting our freedoms, and we should,” he concluded. “But we should also thank the media for the same reason — especially when the stakes have never been higher.”

Holt was immediately slammed for the comparison and CNN was blasted for printing the piece.

Shame on @CNN. It is disgraceful for any “news” corporation to engage in this caliber of self-flagellation while minimizing the true sacrifice of our armed forces. pic.twitter.com/tJvWiU8S75

— Elliott Hamilton (@ElliottRHams) August 7, 2018

@CNN link! https://t.co/yoPfsxhmGF

— Erielle Davidson (@politicalelle) August 7, 2018

why did I read this in Acosta’s voice

why was it so on brandhttps://t.co/lyCEY7Le0G pic.twitter.com/HnZssVGcei

— Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) August 7, 2018

C’mon, man.https://t.co/G14wnHvcUk pic.twitter.com/uvKb3Gwv3C

— Christopher J. Scalia (@cjscalia) August 7, 2018

How do you write this and think, “Yes, this is good” and then submit it through edits where another person thinks, “Yes, let’s publish this.” https://t.co/yqhMudPkFG pic.twitter.com/hcX2jsdDMd

— Natalie Johnson (@nataliejohnsonn) August 7, 2018

Never have so many been so impressed with themselves for so little apparent reason… https://t.co/g4mxCuTjRH

— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) August 7, 2018

You have to love CNN writing an article telling us how they themselves are flawless. In my business we call that a self-licking ice cream cone

— Bob B. (@B21956) August 7, 2018

1) How arrogant of @CNN to think they are the sole protector of the free press.
2) How dare you place yourself on the level of our service members.

— Adam Beale (@AdBeal2) August 7, 2018

What idiot at @CNN thought that statement was a good idea? pic.twitter.com/uLrLI43zIW

— Ryan Ownby (@Ryanownby) August 7, 2018

I remember this one time, in Afghanistan, that I thought “this would be way more dangerous if I was a reporter”.

— Thomas Schiltz .·. (@trs1911) August 7, 2018

“The media isn’t evil”
-the media

— 《☆》 general commander (@YourBiznes) August 7, 2018

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Frieda Powers

Senior Staff Writer
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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