The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-08-15
DEGRADING JOURNALISM.

The liberty of the press is one Of the most
precious Blooms that so TO make up the glo-
rious institutions of free government.
Suppress it and liberty reels until the hand
of despotism will choke out almost the very
existence of a people. There is no good
citizen that would see that journalistic lib
erty, acting in its cue slhere, abridged in
the least. But when that right or free
dom degenerates into license, it should
meet, and should receive the most unhes-
tating and the most unqualified dsap-
proyal, rcbuke and censure by all who
have any respect for justice. honesty and
the rights Of their fellowmen. Criticism
OF the public acts, and in many cases Of the
private conduct of public officials, is legti-
mate work, and even then it should be
given in proper manner and under sr-
proprate circumstances. No journal has
any right TO dcfame or attempt 20 degrade
a man any more than has an
individual or Judge upon the bench.
Indeed the voice Of an individual reaches
but few auditors, but the journal may be
seen by thousands to produce its impress
sions upon those, who, in all probability,
have never seen the party maligncd. The
vocal vtuperation is not only limited in the
matter Of its hearers, but it ceases then and
there, while the printed sheet lasts for years
in The future to beget false impressions
upon those who have no means of ascer-
tanning the other side of the view.
A dress n bonnet, some documents
or other things are wrapped up in piece of
newspaper containing the abusive accounts
OF some person perhaps villainously Sian
dercd. Years aiterward the package is
needed and brought forth and then and
there upon the minds of the PERSONS family
or friends, or It may be only acquaintance
or strangers, the shameless statements
glare upon the Reconsideration, and pecr-
liar thoughts run through their brains as to
the party thus abused, perhaps now dead,
and heretofore held in holy reverence, or per.
haps in some distant section. The fruit
lives in the coming time, thus to
have all manner of effect, AZ well
as crculates everywhere among
thc citzenry of the day. 1t is because of
this power that the true, faithful, honest
journalist is cautious Of what he speaks.
Appreciative of the great responsibility of
his calling, he is cautious OF his utterances.
1t is because of this that an intelligent,
right thinking community should and will
and frown down and refuse
not only to paironizc but to tolerate such
papers in their midst. The individual that
should be guilty of a wrong to fellow citi-
zen, after the fashion indicated, ought not
to be countcnanccd by decent society. How
much less then ought to be tolerated the
paper that will descend to such base dcgcn-
Grafton with its disgusting language and
its infamous carricatures. Personality
never enters into true journalism, and it is
as much the duty and interest of the latter
to see that such poisonous weeds are rooted
out OF its fields, as Il is the community
welfare. This pcrsonaliSm in political
newspapcrdom is today doing as much, If
not more, than anything else to keep
from office and out of all political races
the best OF our citizens. TO have their
names, their characters, their conduct, etc,
bedraggled in the dirty pool of personal
contests, is something that the better class,
qualities and qualifications to
earn good livings otherwise, are not dis
posed to submit to. The consequence is
tendency to bring out roughcr characters,
to swim like rotten apples on the surface,
and who, too, like rotten apples, have moth
ing to lose by contact with other similar
things they may happen to meet
with on the muddy stream.
All this is bad enough when the immediate
parties to the contest are drawn in, but
when passion or prejudice runs so high as
thus to treat honest supporters of candi-
dates, tho conduct becomes unSpeakably
reprehensiblc and disgusting and passes all
forbearance, running liberty into license
There is n law on the statute book of this
as well as other states, inllicting proper
penalties for these agressions and violations,
and IL should be the duty, the pride aud
the pleasure of grand jures to see, of them.
selves, that such law is metcd in full guam
tity to all found guilty
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