Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-05-04

Associated Press by no means has mo-
nopoly of the news. Officials may give
out their version Of the incidents to the
Associated Press but then the independ-
ent newspapers, when they see fit, will
also investigate matters for themselves.
For instance, take an illustration. In
the last issue of THE ENQUIRER there
was a statement that man had been
caught trying to file the locks of the
magazine of the Puritan, and was court
martialed, convicted and sentenced to be
shot. The Associated Press next day said
this story was untrue. 1t admitted that a
man had been caught monkeying about
the magazine and the suspicious sailors
were clamorous against him as traitor.
Further, it was stated that the fellow was
under arrest, but there was really no rea-
son for believing him guilty of treason,
etc. Maybe the first story was true and
maybe it was not. 1t is known that our
navy includes men of all nationalities,
and the fact, if fact it is, that there are
spies on board, is calculated to give a
great deal of uneasiness. Then, since the
Associated Press is official, what is more
natural than that it should be made the
medium for the denial of story, informa-
ton of which is not calculated to inspire
confidence. But we do not mean to say
that the first story is true. We confess
that we do not know.
But in addition to the Associated Press,
there are other news-collecting agencies.
On the eastern side of the continent their
Headquarters are New York and Wash
ington. They serve principally the after
noon papers Of the smaller towns. Much
of their news they get direct. Some they
collect from the morning editions OF the
big metropolitan dailies, and some they
get from the afternoon papers. A great
deal of the news they collect is necessari-
ly the same as that collected by the Asso-
ciated Press. They handle some that the
Associated Press cannot afford to handle,
for the reason it can acquire no legal title
to it. Having already been collected by
independent papers, the Associated Press,
should it undertake to send the same
news back to those papers, would be in a
rather peculiar position. Consequently,
much Of it is never sent out by the Asso-
ciated Press at ALL But as to it's reliabil-
ity? 1t is just as reliable as that Of the
Associated Press. Why should it not be?
These independent agencies are run by
thoroughgoing newspaper men who un'
derstand their business, and who know
that if they should fake their customers
their customers would quit them.
But it is not our object to run down the
Associated Press. That organization is
big thing. 1t is the biggest and most i'm
portant single newsgathering agency in
existence. Many papers in the smaller
cities depend upon it entirely for their
telegraphic news. Its news is far better
than none at all. 1t fills an important
field in newspaperdom generally. But it
lacks much of being all in all. 1t gets
things wrong sometimes just like other
people, and it often fails to get there first
with hot news of vital Importance, and
those who are disposed to discredit any
news dispatch because it may not happen
to be vouched for by the Associated Press
will make ridiculous mistake.