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[One of the features of the banquet on the occasion of the Fourth Annual Newspaper Conference was Mr. Cheney's address on some of the v'.'-"l{’r('$§0S of ioirrunlism as he had olrservrd them. His charges of Prejudice and policy-colored news drew a reply from Edgar B. Piper, editor of the Oregonian, who expressed entire conﬁdence in the fairness of the newspapers and the freedom of their news columns from h':.<. The two speakers verc thorouwhly agreed on the v:~.lu-a of jnur|i:.li-rtic rthi"s but diﬁered as to how far along the road toward perfection in this respect the newspapers have already gone. ]

I HAVE nothing constructive to offer. I have no inspirational message. It subaltern, a domestic advocate unceasingly suborned, employed by the proprietors to plead in their behalf.” Let no one be surprised, therefore, if

is my part to attempt an analysis or criticism of certain customs, practices

prejudice persists in the editor and news

and habits of thought found in news paper work.

Let us stand before a mirror and look at ourselves. And instead of admiring the massive dome of intellect of the composite head reflected in the glass, let us see if we cannot detect a bump of egotism. Instead of the keen and pierc

writer. Up to a decade ago prejudice formed the chief reason for the existence

of most periodicals.

it had to have such an organ and advocate wherever it sought to grow. In more recent years another conception

ing eye, perhaps we will note defective and jaundiced vision.

of the ﬁeld of a newspaper has been ac

First I will speak of the city news

cepted.

papers and their writers, and I will note bundles of passions, whime. desires,

prejudices, which are the master, the guiding motives of action. IVc talk of being impartial and unbiased, and perhaps we honestly try to attain to that sublime state.

Every newspaper

was the organ and advocate of some party or faction, and every party or faction felt

The so-called independent news

paper is the consequence, and it professes to print all news, of all parties and factions, with unbiased impartiality. In this it succeeds only indifferently. In the year of a presidential election partisan feeling runs high. In such a year, not a single daily paper in the city

of—say, Boston—prints the truth, the

PREJUDICE STILL PERSISTS

pure and unadorned truth, in its politi

At several times in history man has fancied he has freed himself from the rule of the passions and has enthroned reason.

cal columns.

Misrepresentation, exaggeration and garbling of facts are practiced

without exception.

Such was the philosophy of the

Between campaigns, partisanship takes

leaders of thought of the period preceding the French Revolution, but in the fol lowing century the writer, Taine, pointed out their error, saying: “ Not only is reason not natural to

a half vacation, but it does not leave the

man

nor

universal

in

ﬁeld wholly. Prejudice ﬁnds expression chieﬂy through the medium of special cor

respondents, and particularly the Washington

correspondents.

We

note

two

humanity, but,

classes of correspondents, those who seek

again, in the conduct of man and of humanity, its inﬂuence is small. The place

to supplement the regular news agencies and those who parallel those agencies.

obtained by reason is always restricted, the oﬁice it ﬁlls is generally secondary.

the press bureaus have an admitted news

Openly or secretly, it is only a convenient

value.

Correspondents who seek to supplement

[3]

They dig up odd and out-of-the