The morning call., 1893-11-13
NEWSPAPER HERESIEs.
Constituencies Editors Should Not Be
Placed in Charge of Daily Papers.

Constituencies Editors Should Not Be
Placed in Charge of Daily Papers.
= Rev. Thomas Filben of the CallfO rlia
Methodist Episcopal Church took his text
from Zach. 2. Behold d flying ROLL" Mr.
Filben said:
Though it was not in the mind OF the
the prophet when he framed the figure, a
filter designation of the modern periodical
press could not be devised. Would that
this modern wonder were always in the
beneficent service of the prophet roll, in
the service of righteousness, disclosing
and bringing TO judgment all crime and
Wrongdoing Not that the press is always
wrong. 1t is a twice-told tale the growth
and power Of the press. and its still grow
ing power and importance and as we'll its
general benefcence. No one would wish
that these should be less.
Its service to the world is beyond COM
putation. spreading intelligence. To read
regularly a well-conducted city newspaper
is in itself a liberal education. 1t does a
large service to morals as public scouTge
of vice and ii renders no small aid to reli-
gion. These obligation are freely reeog-
nized by those who are pressing this move
meut of refOrm-the only purpose is TO re-
form abuses, abuses that have come natur-
allv enough perhaps. For newspaper is an
intensely human institution, notwithstand-
ing the fetch many make Of 1t. 1t Is liable
to all the limitations, preJudices, ignorance
and sins of our common humanity.
There is a false theory in journalism
that a newspaper must be impefsOnal. and
SO il turns out that great many good
men are publishing newspapers win a
very bad tendency. 1t is said that paper
rfun 40 n
every sort is lawful plumber for the re-
porter. Out Of this principle springs the
newspaper heresy that you must publish
what the public want, and the demand is
measured by the clamor of the baser
element, and the lOng-sutfering patience OF
the better classes is ignored. Then il
seems to be forgotten that papers create a
demand by the character Of what they
print,
'The papers of this city were largely re-
sponsible for the carnival Of slogging tina
ragged in this city few years ago, and,
when the papers changed front, slogglDg
was easily suppressed. Newspapers should
lead public sentiment, not follow it. es-
.peciaHy when the sentiment Is wrong. and
they are rare cases when the tone of this
sentiment is not better than the tone of the
average ultra-seDSatiOnal daily. 1t were a
sad picture of moral degeneracy on the
times if the stuff dished up by many papers
were the demand of the public palate.
Some current newspaper abuses are IN
d: pardonable and as dangerous as unpardoD-
able. There is too much Of personal as
saUlts that fall just short Of the law Of
libel.
:. .t'.Reputations are made and unmade too
: wantonly. There has been too much Of
this in some of our city papers of late
personal attacks that plainly have their
animus 10 the venom of newspaper pub
Fishers. There is call for more conscience
: in the editorial chair A conscienceles SIS
editor is a public enemy. The power of an
:, editor is too fearful to be welded by any
but good man.
. 1T is time that halt was called to the
common peddling Of prurient matter that
: has called forth this crusade. A paper is
unfit to be published. that could not be
read aloud freely at the breakfast table in
the presence of growing family, and
many of our papers recently have been
filed with vile details unfit for the gaze of
pure maidenh0od. Then these very papers
are often Inconsistent. One of our dailies
recently headlined an editorial Hang
Some Doctors" aud the advertising
columns of that paper contained the ads
. OF the very doctors against whom the
article was leveled. Some of our papers
advertise known prostitution, and surely
it is time for a halt. The agitation is
timely. The evils are not fundamental.
The press will be greater without these
excresences, and 1t OughG not be difficult
in the name of humanity and decency of
public and private morals, TO say nothing
of religion. to purify the press Of these
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