The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-02-23
Hard on the Yellow Journals.

The announcement made by Capt.
Sampson, of the policy to be pursued
by the board Of inquiry in giving out
news of it's investigation at Ha-
vana, lays down the only prop
er and dignified course. It will
be hard, though, on the yellow
journals" East and West, because it
brands before their birth the offspring
Of their fancy as illegitimate. The de-
struction OF the Maine has been rare
opportunity for freak journalism. The
few papers in New York city that live
upon sensationalism, and sell their stuff
their fake factory running night and
day ever since. There has not been a
morning in which the Associated Press
report did not contain every item of
actual news, not only fact but prob
ability. There has not been a morning
when these rank newspapers and these
special Services" did rot send out
columns of conjecture and rumor, all
of which proved to be mere fabrication.
The public and the naval officers car
ed nothing about this as long as it did
not touch official relations. It was
merely a more disgraceful form of jim
goism, because adopted for pelf.
With the converting of the board of
inquiry, however, it became necessary
fo toll 10 tIo in
ventions that were certain to be sent
out as a correct account of its daily
work and proceedings. These would be
calculated to inf1ame the public mind,
to obscure the facts and to render sober
judgment impossible. We might be
hurried to the very verge of war by
bogus discoveries in the harbor of Ha
vana. Therefore, Capt. Sampson has
taken a proper precaution. He has an
nounced to the Associated Press cor
respondent that the only accurate and
official news will be given to the public
through that medium. The testimony
that is given and the facts that are es-
tablished will not be published
or known until the inquiry has
been finished, and then they
will be given to the Associated
Press. Going further than this, Capt.
Sampson says: you may say that this
rule is absolute Due care will be
taken for the rigid enforcement of it,
and all stories purporting to come from
the court should be set down as false.
L shall give to the Associated Press
such routine news of the proceedings as
is proper"
This is a trife hard on the yellow
newspape and on the fake specials.
The public is warned in advance that
not enc word of the sensations, which
they have already in their desks, pre-
pared to spring each morning in regu
lar order, is to be believed This will
not prevent them. of course, from is
suing their usual broadsides, but it will
make it the readers own fault if he
saved by this action of Capt. Sampson.
The investigation will not be made
through the newspapers, but through
the proper board, which will weigh the
facts and reach it's conclusions unin-
fiuenced by agitation and outcry. Those
facts and that conclusion will then be
given to the public through the Asso-
ciated Press and the newspapers that
it serves Readers will take notice that
scare headlines and pretended dis
closures of what is going on at Havana
will prove nothing except that the user
has gone out of the newspaper business,
and decided to advertise itself as will
full purveyor of falsehood.