The Livingston enterprise. [volume] (Livingston, Mont.) 1883-1914, 1885-08-22

live local paper can reasonably multiply
his subscription list 10y from five to ten
in order to reach fair estimate of the
number of his readers. And this is an
encouraging sign. If you are publish
ing paper that is sought after and read
by the best sentiment of your commun-
itv YOU have scored a success. However
little the public appreciates the mental
and physical labor and the expense in
volved in the production of the paper
daily or weekly issued it has an unerr-
ing instinct for what constitutes good
paper. You may seek to impress 1t upon
your readers minds and you may your
self believe that you are publishing a
better paper than your rivals but the
actual test is it's comparative popularity
The public verdict must be depended
upon as the judgment of success or de-
feat
/ can think of no more subtle tlattery
and no more pronounced evidence of ap-
probation of a newspaper than the pub
lie admission that it is reliable. When
your readers come to understand, from
experience, that you are diligent to pub
lish only the truth, you have obtained!
hold upon their continued support that
it will be difficult to break. But repeat
ed misstatements, whether they arise
from wilful distortions of known fact
or careless investigation, followed by
detection. exposure and probable cor
rection or apologies weaken public res
pect and reliance and, as an inevitable
consequence, lessen your patronage.
While no considerations should restrict
the publication of legitimate news, the
avoidance of sensationalism is in my
opinion essential to the success OF every
paper in Montana. Sensational journal
ism is more easily recognized than de-
fined. 10 narrate an imaginary occur
renee of startling character the theatre
of which is indefinite or located far away
from any chance of investigation by the
majority of your readers; to seize upon
an episode of trivial import and, by
loading it with imaginary it harmless
details, give new and more interesting
phases; to twist and distOrt legitimate
news item in order to give it startling
or sensational aspect; to hint at various
unmentioned or unmentionable details
in order to furnish food for the readers
to drag private affairs into
print when nothing has been done to
warrant the license; all these are in
stances of sensationalism and all par
take more or less of the element of
falsehood- fraud upon the whole pub
lie or upon some individual. From the
most innocent species of sensationalism
is only short step to that policy which
regularly caters to low and prurient
tastes or systematically leyies black
mail as an alternative Of assault upon
private character or the exposure of pri-
vate transactions. SO far as inveStiga-
lion will achieve that end let your news
be trustworthy and then publish all of
it you can. 1t is common excuse on
the part of country editors that their
papers are SO small that they are not
able to make them good. The less space
you have to fill the more time you
should employ in producing, selecting,
revising, condensing and otherwise pre-
pairing such matter as you publish. In
my opinion the successful paper OF the
future, whether daily or weekly, will be
the one whose few columns are crowded
with systematically arranged news that
has been carefully pruned of all super
fluous drapery, and whose substance is
condensed into as few well-chosen words
as will tell the whole story and no more.
OF what should constitute the person.
al qualifications OF successful journal
list it is almost useless to speak. It is at
least a profession where no talent is
buried in the earth. In it many fail
where few succeed. The great prizes
are scarce and many contend for them.
The qualifications for success are mani
fold and few possess even fraction of
them. All the endoWments Of mind
and body which nature might bestOW
upon her ideal man; all the varied
learning that could be acquired in the
years usually devoted to exclusive study;
all the constant attention that retent-
i've memory might give to the kaleido-
scope Of current events; all the unre-
mitting industry that might be bestoW-
ed upon the profession would only be
sufficient to win the grand prize in jour
nalism. Not only does it require the
power to think readily and write fluent
" but it involves the ability to appre-
ciate the worth or worthlessness of
what others write, to sift sense from
nonsense and truth from fallacy, to
summon at will all the faculties Of the
successful man of the world, to un-
derstand the condition of the public
pulse, to speak intelligently on every
subject of thought from the most trivial
to the most profound. If there is one
single department of learning from alb
stract science to precinct politics that a
editor does not at sometime
in the course Of year feel the practical
need Of being intimately acquainted
with have vet to discover what it is.
Some writer has said: 1.-The well en-
dowed and well equipped journalist
must possess the faculty, the breadth,
the judgment, the knowledge, the stead
mess and the versatility which are in
to the well endowed and well
statesman. There is nothing
in the occupations, labors and qualifca-
tions of the one which is not suitable
to the qualifications, labors, and occu-
pations of the other. The successful
Journalist must be a successful man Of
business. To administer the editorial
department Of an important newspaper
is equal to administering government.
1t is not given every man to succeed in
politics and administration; but if any
one shall turn from these employments
because he is convinced that he does not
possess the talents which are requisite
to success, it will be vain for him to ex-
pect to succeed in journalism. The few
high prizes of either pursuit are only to
be gained by the men of ample and well
balanced power; but he who is destined
to fail in one, is just as surely destined
to fail in the other
But if there are few high prizes in
the world Of newspaper making it can
at least be said that there are no blanks.
With the heightened recognition of the
power welded by the press the standard
of journalism is advancing and the re-
muneration is according itself to the
merit of its recipient as in other profess