Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1894-07-21
NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING.
eorcibie Arguments which the Business
World should Heed.

O0SS dDu JTuIn as are COuV6iuou III
u paper read by Editor o. J. Sturgis,
Of the Uniontown (PenD.) Daily
News Standard, upon the occasion OF
o recent local gathering and from
which cOpiOus 9 tracts are given be.
low. Mr.. Stuigis went to the heart
Of the subject of the relations exist
ing between newspapers and the pub.
lie. taking an exalted and dignity.
Ing view Of the newspaper publish
ing business one that is full of food
for thought, whether the reader have
70 do with the business office or ''up--
stairs" He said in part:
1T seems to be common impress.
sion that the newspaper Is q sort Of
public institution, upon which every
body has claim. some right to Q
say In its management or to q kick
II It's policy does not suit him. For
that reason, o newspaper Is CONSTANT
ly subjected to demands that are un-
reasonable and unjust. II man
goes into the mercantile business,
you do not expect to control his
policy or shape his views simply be.
cause you buy his commodities You
takeihis goods he takes your money;
that ends the transaction. Tho
newspaper also does legitimate
merchandising business II deals
In news and advertising space. Those
are its commodities. It. pays for
news what II costs to collect, print
and publish II, including the inter-
est on invested capital. 1t sells
news for the price of the paper; and,
considering the labor involved, the
money expended and tho capital In
vested In Its production, there IL
nothing 50 cheap as the American
newspaper, nothing that gives 50
much for SO little. Few people have
any adequate idea Of what 1t costs to
run newspaper In an ordinary coun-
try town. The failure to appreciate
this, and to grasp the business rela.
tion which the editors enterprise
sustains to other enterprises, ex.
plains the large number nj news.
paper failu es that are recorded and
the vast amount Of money annually
sunk In the business.
"What, then, Is the business
status o. the newspaper? 1t Is Q
private enterprise. Its proprietor
whether Individual. firm, or com
pany-.publishes II for profit, to make
q living out VI II, just as an individ.
ual or q corporation goes into tho
manufacturing or banking business.
The motive here Is no lower, the
calling no less honorable, than Ia his
who enters any other vocation Of o
semi.public character. The same Oh
legation OF moral and business integ..
rity rests upon the press as upon
| other p. DECISIONS and businc sses, and
the fact that an occasional newspaper
prostitutes Its columns to unworthy
ends no mo 9 condemns journalism a.
! q profession or calling, than the
legal or medical profession Is made
unworthy OF public confidence be-
cause OF Isolated cases Of unprofes-
siOnal or dishoporable conduct BY o
member. A newspaper gets no
special credit for maintaining q high.
moral tone. but II gets plenty OF cen.
sure II anything creeps into is col.
umns 20 lower that tone. II IL ex-
pected ~ bc VII tu0us, as q matter Of
Course.
1T Is the conception Of the news.
paper Us o legitimate private busi.
meas enterprise that has made great
results possible. The editor gathers
the news Of the field. and sells 10 to
his subscribers When the subscriber
gets that, he has what no paid for,
and there his claim stops. Tho pa
per Is not obliged to print the CON-
municatiOn Of Old Subscriber Con.
slant Reader Taxpayer or PRO
Bono Publico,' nor even to give any
reason for II. II the subscriber
imagines no has special rights and
therefore special grievances, he can.
stop his paper, and there IL no harm.
done. The conscientious newspaper
endcavors to have its news correct
and trustworthy. and to verify It's
information, In order not to mis-.
lead or iniurc the innocent. Consid-
ering the difficulty, often, Of finding
reliable sources OF information, and
Of sitting the false from the true, tho
wonder Is not that 10 many errors
creep 10. but that 70 many are kept
out.
In tho large cities, this mutual 70.
lation between the press and the
public 10 better understood than In
the country. and hence the relative
growth OF the city paper has far out
stripped that OF It's rural c0ntemp0r.
airy. The city paper does business on
business principles, and Is therefor
able to DO prosperous, md TO live In
Its own home on o front street.
When you enter its ONCE,
tho first thing visible 10 the
business manager, with his clerks
at the cash counter. The cd.
itOr and his assistants are In emOte
back room, or on the third floor.
The day OF the b siness manager in
the country newspaper office Is also
coming, and when 1t does come, the
local newspaper will occupy the place
II long since earned-that of an indie.
pendent and profitable business en-
terprise. The country newspaper
has been crippled because the editor
was u goOd-natured. Obliging individ-,
ual, who allowed himself to he
handicapped by yielding to the mis-
taken public notion that it was q
art of his business to boost along
everybodY's else business, free of
charge.
when that time comes, the man
who wants q notice printed In the
newspaper for his personal benefit,
Or to advance hts private interest,
will pay for 1t, just as he pays the