Millie LaFontaine lives in Concord.

Over a year ago NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen posted a warning on Twitter. “It’s not the odds, but the stakes,” he cautioned. The 2024 election cycle was not like a trip to the racetrack. The gravity of the problem we face has only become clearer since he first wrote this.

Journalists cannot do what had in days gone by been a sign of impartiality, simply reporting the results of polls and other tools to inform the public. They cannot rely on plain facts to tell the truth when “facts” can be invented out of thin air to suit the purposes of the inventor. There can be no such thing as a balanced presentation of the issues when some claims are blatantly false.

For too many people the only interesting part of politics is the neck-and-neck thrill of the horse race. That’s where they will rely on the cheap thrill of the news to tell them how to place their bets. In the past that may have worked pretty well. But today, the rules of reporting have been upended.

To give little else to the voters on which to make their decisions than the foibles and personalities of the candidates, or the size of their war chests, is no longer enough. Journalists need to do more, and voters need to think more.

Allowing voters to vote based on a desire to get what they think they used to have at some mythical moment in the past, or not to vote because they don’t like either candidate, opens the doors to a chaotic future.

Voters may be tempted to choose a candidate on the basis of age, despite the fact that the “younger” candidate is nipping at the heels of the “older” candidate in years. They need to have more information about the actual performance of the candidate. A candidate spewing falsehoods and rambling on about personal grudges instead of clearly articulating his vision for our future is hardly acting in a manner befitting the leader of the free world.

Some voters may think that a felon convicted in a court of law is even more deserving of their money and their vote after his conviction than he was before. They need to understand this felon’s plans are to upend our entire judicial system. Voters may be convinced that their candidate promises them the prosperity they feel they deserve. They need to be shown if their candidate has no desire to help anyone but himself and his rich cronies, and will take away their economic safety net the first chance he gets.

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Voters who believe that building a wall at our southern border or making it virtually impossible for someone not born here to come here, need to be shown that neither of these will make them safer or better off. They need to see the futility and inhumanity of policies that would have prevented nearly every single one of us from living here had it been enforced only a few generations ago.

Voters who rightfully care about the sanctity of life should be helped to understand that women’s lives and their ability to care for their families are not well served by an arbitrary patchwork quilt of state laws that make a very private and agonizing decision a matter of public inquisition and punishment.

Voters who think it’s fine for us to ignore the needs of people in other countries, or turn a blind eye to affronts to democracy, or cozy up to ruthless dictators, need to learn how these rob us all of any opportunity for peace. We live in a world where the needs and interests of many nations are important to consider. We need to lead by example, not by throwing tantrums or grabbing what we think is ours.

Voters need to understand that the planet as we know it is in tremendous danger, due largely to our consumption of fossil fuels. The fossil fuel industry is only too happy to keep us in a blissful state of ignorance, only too happy to pour money into the campaign of the one promoting “Drill, baby, drill.” We need drastic measures to achieve a come-from-behind finish. Our nation needs to be on the side of the human race.

The stakes could simply not be higher. Journalists need to be perfectly clear, and voters need to open their eyes, ears and minds to the truth journalists illuminate. Voters need to understand the enormity of the choice before them.

Our very democracy is at stake, our rule of law, our economic safety net, our geopolitical landscape, and the health of our planet.