The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-03-09
Life Truly Portrayed
By Newspapers.
TREND OF TIMES.
Miss Writings Essay on
journalism.

was under the auspices Of the literature
committee, Mrs. Annie R. NIacMurray
chairman, was presented by members
of the club. Recent American ltera,
ture-how does it represent life?" was
the subject, and was treated under the
four subdivisions of Journalism
| THE essay" Poetry" and Fiction
by Miss Eleanor Whiting, Miss Alice
Bedding, principal of the Abbott street
| school, Miss Ella L. Dwyer, principa
of the Oxford street school, and Mrs
Annie Russell Marble, respectively. Il
has been found that where several top
les or phases of topic are presented
by different speakers, the programs are
of the greatest interest, and yesterday
program was no exception.
Miss Whiting, who was the first
speaker of the afternoon, said: Jour
naIiSm is not the corrupt or corrupting
| influence 1t is sometimes painted. 1t is
essentially truth-telling and truth-loV-
ing; and in the final analysis, it repre-
sents life honestly, without distortion
| and with a sensitiveness and fidelity
that make 1t the most complete and
| u SASL wv u Uily mirror Oh cOQlenDOldleOuS
life that we know.
Among the many grotesque ideas
that linger in the public mind and will
not give up the ghost, none is more ten
aclous of life than that hoary old lie
that newspapers deliberately manufac-
ture news, taking it when it does not
exist and twisting facts out Of a ma
licious joy in the falsehoods they can
propagate. The number of newspapers
that voluntarily mislead the public is
far, far smaller than is commonly sup
posed. Take the Spanish-American war,
for instance. That, if anything ever did,
lent itself to sensationalism. offering
the prizes of increased reputation and
startling circulation to the paper which
could tell the biggest stories and get,
or seem to get, the news first.
Think of the money that was poured
out In keeping that corps of more than
100 correspondents at the front, and in
paying for the news that they cabled
pack, sometimes at the rate of $33 for
70 words! [ have heard it stated on good
authority that the newspapers that de-
llberately distorted news could be
counted on the fingers of one hand.
Think of Richard Harding Davis, Ste
phen Bonsal, Edward Marshall, and the
others, who cheerfully endured the pri-
vations of camp life and shared the
dangers of schrapnel and fever that
their papers might have the news O.
believe me, these men did not go TO
Cuba to fake news!
And if this was true where tremen-
dous odds were at hazard it holds of
the great bulk of city and general af-
fairs, Which are handed with a con-
seientiousness and singleness of pur-
pose that often fail to appear in print
People never seem to allow newspa-
perS that margin of fallibilty which
they are willing to concede to other
human institutions. The idea that a
conscientious reporter may be taken in
| through the ignorance or guile of 9th
ers, or that he may hear wrong, or
forget, or make a slip in writing, lust
like you or me or anybody, seems nor
to cross the minds of the people who
are so annoyed to find their names mis-
spelled or omitted or inserted where
the ought not to be. People are so hard
on the newspapers. The most serious
charge on the score of falsehood that
can be supported, believe, against the
press is that in their eagerness to out
do their rivals, newspapers frequently
anticipate events.
There are two aXioms which doroi-
nate in varying degrees every reputable
newspaper office. One of these is-teII
the truth; the other is-make the truth
interesting. You will see at a. glance
that one paper may easily emphasize
one axiom at the expense of the other
ana you can readily guess the tenDta-
ton which exists to dress facts IN in
q style that will compel attention
whenever matter is deliberately suhor-
dlnated to manner, and to have an item,
spicy, humorous, catchy, or what NOT
Is the first thought-then what is called
senSationalism is sure to creep in.
The sensationalism of the press has
been made the text of many a bitter
attack and has kept many good neonia
awake o nights, because the public
does not seem to understand that an
newspapers are sensational today. inst
as life, this modern life of ours. is SEN
sational
"Sensationalism is nothing new, The.
discovery Of America was one Of tbe
most sensational things that ever oc-
cuFIeu: Inc career of Napoleon was
sensational in the extreme. What couId
be more sensational than this meetine
OF the worcester Womans Club, if if
We're possible to look at it from tho
point Of view of 500 or 100 or even "a
years ago? "
How about the electric car the A.
lantlc cable, the telephone-wrre tbev
not all tremendously sensational in
their way? What could be more SEN
ders and suicides? What could have
been more sensational than the destI,1c-
ton of the Maine?
Ihe news of the destruction of that
noble battleship was received in tLo
of1lce OF The Spy about midnight Wae
ever anything more improbabIe mo-,
the race OF 1t, more contrary TO common
sense ana experience? What was a ma
per to do-to print it or not to nrin+ 10
There was no time, no chance for 1ni
u uS An depended on the Judgment
u one man. ana the point was either
20 say that the Maine had been bIov,,,
up or else to say that the Maine bod
not been blown up. What would vo(
nave thought of a paper that ala not
mention the event? | only instance M
case of sensationalism 10 Dr0,-o 10
sensational straight news can be sn6
also TO show how difficult il son1eti,,,ae
Is LOT paper to know what to do and
how hard the public is on paners ''''N
Feople are forever asking the name
papers why did you print this% WHY
not going to publish news, ,vh9t 81 ..i,. ~
1t publish? And who or What b,,t 9't ~
newspaper Is to decide what is ne,,,, 'l Wy,
what Is not? The public has rt,t,3 VI
insist that the degrading things Of iif' o
the vile by-products Of civi1i1ot ~,
not yet realized. shall be Nitbbeid f fulol
publicity; barring these. the newsna,,a,,
claims the right to publish what If SCI
fit. In its most sensational mop,e,,ts
IT is not more sensational than life
suspect that the real reason WIN, Ma
--------------------- 10y nice
A REMEDY FOR THE GRIPPE.
a remedy recommended for natiaxta
with L.