The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-09-06
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Z. NJ o'NEtLL, OF THE PITTsBuRG DISPATCH"
The future promises greater diversity as to
price, purpose aud character OF the newspapers.
Inc more elaborate Issues OF the daily press, as
lot instance the Sunday editions of the best
class OF journals viii doubtless print more aud
6Sftsf matter Of magazine quality than hereto
fore The superior typography, better paper
and better Illustrations OF the magaZi ne, as well
as the ampler time for selecting and arranging
its contents, will, however, always Establish
such difference between the magazine and the
newspaper as ~ put competition between them
out OF the question. Rather, the more one is
read the more viii the other be.
AS 10 price OF newspapers, that will depend
on the constituency OF each. There will al
ways be a paying constituency for g. or 4, or
even cent papers, ii copious as TO quantity and
high as 20 quality Of contents. So long, how
ever. as the attractions of probable increased
circulation at cents make fair commercial
risk fcr publishers, so long may many papers
prefer 10 sell at less price than most Of their
Subscribers would be actually willing to pay fer
them. II looks as il cents were to be the av-
erage standard price in most cities TOR daily
newspapers, with 1-cent papers in every COM
munity TOT those who like the cheapest and
most quickly read article, and with and scent
pagers for the class which wishes the fuller
news and has the most time to read and digest
1T and to whom the news Ia of most importance
and actual value.
The newspaper will always have to dereud
primarily upon some distinguishing quality of
its news Editorial influence will grow In pro-
portion as editorial ecu pment ana fitness
curate and adequate knowledge OF the matter in
hand anu is done in a spirit OF judicia. fairness
seeking only the expression OF the truth as it
may be, il cannot fail to grow in influence The
tendency must inevitably be in this direction If
we are at all TO assume progress.
Illustration will doubtless be better It has
the advantage OF starting with large margin for
improvement; as it taxes the imagination to
conceive, as to much of it, that il might be
worse Paper also viii be better. Low prices
Tor white paper permit this; and the tendency is
already TO prefer good paper to the cheapest. 1t
Will be as good in the future the swift presses
and the selling price of the manufactured news
paper may permit Already much better
grades OF white paper are being sought by the
leading publishers
There is no such field now for an American
Journal as that covered by the Petit Journal of
Paris. There is not yet sufficiently exclusive
concentration of popular interest upon the
same topics. What is possible in European
countries. where newspapers are not much oc-
cupied with the special interests OF persons or
localities, is not yet possible here where the
affairs OF each town and village call for more or
as much attention in the local press as affairs
of the nation. The distances also from the
place OF publication and the relative sparseness
of population make any such large editions I'M
possible here in our time.
Personalities will most likely decrease in the
general newspaper press excepting as regards
people prominent in public life. AS matters of
larger and more general import gain upon the
public mind, those which affect merely the in
divIdual or private person will be less looked
Tor unless where they are n part of the note
worthy happening of the day.