The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1908-06-12
A DAILY YELLOW JOURNALIST
IN THE CONFESSIONAL.
Inc Editor OF Country Weekly May Thank His
Stars That He Doesn't Have to Do
Such Work as This.
from an Editorial in the New York
Evening Post.)

Evening POST.
The Career of a Journalist" by
William Salisbury (B. w. Dodge &
Coz. is a vulgarly written account of
vulgar experiences 1t is a book, new
erthless, to provoke disquieting re-
Elections in those who look upon our
newspapers as an important influence
III shaping the tastes and opinions of
American citizens. The author pro-
fesses to have been engaged for nine
Years, chiefly as reporter, on West
ern dailies. He relates his achieve
ments with an appearance of entire
frankness; and though he has OBJ
viously touched up the incidents
somewhat in order to make them
more interesting, he has told the I'M
happy truth only too often. With all
allowance for smartness and exag-
geration, the tale is in certain large
essentials veracious; it is substan-
tiated by the tone OF the newspapers
to which he says he contributed. He
offers convincing explanation of
some of their most revulsive traits.
The first is an Indifference to ac-
curacy-not merely an Indifference,
but a positive preference for inaccu-
racy when that will make STORY"
more sensational. No observer of
our yellow" papers land of many
others which would angrily resent
that name) can suppose that the con-
sistent and continuous distortion of
simple facts, the "corroborative de-
tail. intended to give verisimilitude
60 an otherwise bald and unconvinc-
ing narrative" are due to casual ca
price or the misdirected zeal of indi-
vidual reporters. They are part of
settled policy. On this subject a city
editor or managing editor does not
need 20 issue explicit orders; it is
enough to commend and promote the
reporter who shows talent for orna-
mentatiNn and to discharge the man
who sticks to the bare truth For eX-
emple, Mr.. Salisbury has this to say
ABOUT his labors in Omaha:
Il resorted to making news | had
an anti-cigarette ordinance intro
duced, as had done in Kansas City,
and before it became law | wrote
story about an imaginary mass
meeting OF newsboys to protest
against it as an invasion of their
rights. At another time ] described
he visit to the Mayors Office of
woman and little girl, who sought
The Mayors aid for something. The
child, said, sang pathetic songs until
Mayor Moore shed a tear and granted
heir request. The Mayor must have
been surprised when he read this, as
The whole thing YVES news to him.
But the next day his mulatto secre-
.ary told me the story had been
pasted in the official scrapbook. It's
good stuff for the voters said the
secretary. It'll make 'em think the
Mayors kind-hearted man. Strokes
Of genius like this brought a promo
ton
In Chicago he was assigned to a
street car accident. but it was not so
bad as first reported. Only three per-
sons were hurt, and they not serious
y. l was disappointed. But the
i've or six reporters held 4 council:
Before we got through, the list of
injured had been heightened to fif-
teen, and, we had some sensational
ietails. The addresses of the new
names were assigned to the foreign
/, settlements. These names never!l
be investigated, said one of the re-
porters."
1t was on Hearsts Chicago Amer
lean. however. that Mr.. Salisbury
really learned the traue. His first as
signment was the sinking of a tug
boat:
II didn't recognize my story at
first. in that evenings paper, it had
so many features andreamed of by
me. l was told that one OF the prize
1ope-slingers' in the office had rewrit-
ten it. The rescue OF cat, the boats
mascot, at the risk of all the sailors
lives, was described with much con-
gincing detail. This made me feel
small. l had thought l possessed a
pretty fair imagination, but l realized
| had much TO learn if were to sue
coed in yellow journalism"
He learned it and was himself
made prize dope-slinger:
MY work was TO take the matter
written or telephoned in by ordinary
reporters and dress it up. A dull.
commonplace news item would be
given me to 'featurize.' If it lacked
interesting details, furnished them. i"
This is the kind of journalism that
is making Roadway throughout the
country. The ideal is to be seusa-
tional at all costs; for sensation is |
what appeals to the great mass of |
readers and brings a huge circula-
ton; and circulation, in turn, brings !
advertising. Indeed, for certain |
kind of ADVERTISING and |
cheap bargains of all kinds-a cir !
culation among the ignorant millions |
is essential. The worse you make the |
newspaper, the larger your revenue !
for buying more sensations and hiring |
more prize dope-slingers, and max |
ing the paper still worse. The sue
cessful completion of this vicious cir |
Gle may, as in San Francisco, demon
alize the daily journalism of whole |
city, Everywhere it tends toward
progressive deterioration.
More menacing than mere sensa- !
tionalism, however, is the suppress /
sion of matters of public moment out
1..f1