The comet., 1880-04-24
Plain TaIk About Newspapers.
From the Corinth Record

From the Corinth Record
Did it ever occur to you that when
men failed at everything else, they
often thought they could successfully
RIM n newspaper? 1t Is true that the
newspaper man who is born such will
rarely ever succeed at anything else
hut ii he has that natural tact ana
ojft for the business, he will rarely
postpone trial of it until he had tried
and failed at everything else. or an
pursuits, it does seem to me that tne
newspaper business Is overdone-un-
derdone or not done at all In Ghis
country than, in any other. HOW
some papers are kept up, is surprising
to everybody. You look in vain for
any news of general interest, but you
will find the most trivial incidents III
private life paraded in the local col
umns, and often is it the case that the
proprietor agent will fill a whole col
umn with the incidents of his travel
from place to place, stating with
whom he staid all night, where he ATE
dinner. what beautiful and accom-
plished young ladies he saw, how ne
swan d creek and all such silly
trash. Their readers are easily pleas
ed il such articles please them. Again,
everybody who calls is their nold
friend" who must have puff. The
average reader regards such sheets as
the medium OF expression of personal
feelings between the editor and his
friends. That locals are vital to the
success Of the paper, l Will admit.
But they should be such items as
would not only interest the readers, OF
the locality but also the general reader
if possible. How silly, how ridicu,,
lous is it to announce that "our friend
-- looks happy this morning
it's ten FOUNDER and a girl" How
coarse it sounds in the ears of refined
people 1t may be that all such stuff
pleases the majority of the readers OF
such sheets, but that makes no differ
ence. 1t is the mission and duty OF
public journalist to seek not only to
inform, but to elevate and refine his
readers and to write nothing, publish
nothing, that causes blush to man
tie the cheek of innocence or to excite
disgust in any one. 1t does seem that
of all people, editors should be most
careful and watchful as to what food
they place before their readers. Lit IS
spread before the world, old and
young, grey and gay, good and bad,
and it makes no difference how we'll
or how badly the paper is edited, it
will exert an influence on some minds,
either for good or for evil, which
perhaps will never be eradicated
while life fasts. AS far as oneis able to
Judge, large majority of the editors
have made similar mistake. Edi-
tors, like poets, are born, not made,
and it makes no difference what may
mans education, his learning, his
information, his personal popularity,
if he does not possess the natural gift
and tact of the born editor, he will
surely fail. A striking illustration of
this fact was seen in Ohio many years
ago. A learned and eminent judge OF
great popularity was placed at the
head of leading political paper. in
the confident belief that it would
prove a great success. But the result
was it proved dead failure because
the editor was not born such. The
truth is that the press is a power in
the land and always will be, but its
influence has been sadly diminished
Dy the manner III WHlCu papers nave
been conducted. In the end public
opinion will rid the country Of many
Of these excrescences, and then good
papers will be sustained as they
should be. May the time soon come
when the tone and temper and talent
of the press will be enlisted for the
sole purpose of imparting correct in
of upholding the right by
calm argument, and by exposing error
in spirit of fairness and without bit
and at all times give reason
for the faith that is in them.
COMoS.