The San Francisco call., 1908-04-05


tions between the government and the
newspapers are becoming complicated
Is it proper for a government depart
ment TO employ press agents TO exploit
its operations through the press? Is it
proper to hire government clerks
whose duty it is to write newspaper and
magazine articles? Seeing that much
of the work Of the government is
worthless unless it is made known to
the public, and seeing that the best
method of reaching the public is
through the newspapers, to what ex-
tent can this be done without actually
developing a government press agency?
Where can the line be drawn between
the legitimate diffusion of knowledge
and the skillful exploitation of special
policies and individual schemes?
This question came up recently in the
house, when Representative Mondell OF
Wyoming succeeded in amending the
agricultural appropriation bill by in
serting these words:
no part of this appropriation shall
be used for the preparation. either
wholly or in part, of any newspaper or
magazine article"
This amendment was Instantly at
tackled by Forester Pinchot, against
ment was brought in favor of the
economy and efficiency of newspaper
articles in popular and nontechnical
vein as against the usual technical and
uninteresting government report"
which nobody reads and which news
papers throw in their capacious waste
baskets.
POINTS BREADTH OF LAW
Pinchot made public a letter which
he wrote TO Chairman Scott of the
house committee on agriculture, in
which he defended the policy of en-
ploying men to prepare newspaper
articles concerning the operations of
the forest service. He laid stress upon
the law creating the department OF
agriculture, which provides that its
general design and duties shall be to
acquire and 10 diffuse among the peo-
pie Of the United States useful in
formation on subjects connected with
agriculture, in the most general and
comprehensive sense of that word, etc
Forester Pinchot in his letter to
Chairman Scott points out that the
mass Of the people do not vet under
stand clearly how forests may be used
and yet be preserved. He conceives it
10 be his first duty at this time to dis
semtnate such informa ton. bringing
into the daily life of the people the
thought and practice that will lead to
the best use of their forests. In order
to accomplish this aim he cannot rely
solely upon the usual reports" got
up by experts and scientists, who have
no knowledge of the art of distributing
information
The most obvious method OF reach
ing the people is through the press.
In order to use the press it is neces-
sary to prepare articles in newspaper
fashion-plain, concise and newsy
Therefore, Forester Pinchot has en-
ployed two newspapermen. skilled in
their work, who have before them all
the operations of the forest bureau
They are expected 10 exercise their
news sense in picking out fresh in
formation affecting all parts OF the
country and getting it to the readers
in the sections affected as soon as
possible.
PLAN WORKS WELL
The plan has worked admirably, ac-
cording TO Pinchot. He has found the
correspondents in Washington eager to
use all legitimate news originating in
his bureau. Some Of them ask about
particular matters and his newspaper
clerks furnish it. thereby furnishing
the people Of certain sections import
ant, and. perhaps, vital information.
The circulation of the matter pre-
pared by the news experts of the
bureau was calculated during the last
three months of 1907 This was done
by taking all the clippings of matter
prepared by the bureau and looking up
the circulation of the newspapers print
ton was found to be 100000, not call
culating the circulation OF clippings
that did not reach the bureau.
The printing and circulating of these
clippings by the government would
have cost $500 not counting the cost
Of handling the mail. The mailing
list of the bureau contains 100000
names. If the list were expanded to
5000, 900 il would cost $4,000 for card
indexes and other apparatus, besides
the cost Of operating
Forester Pinchot does not itemize the
cost of getting this information circu-
lated through the newspapers, but he
intimates that it is trifiing compared
with what the cost would be If the
government were to do the work it
self The total cost of all publicity
work Of the bureau last year was $40
600. including the preparation and dis
tribution OF technical pamphlets and
reports.
Whether or not the service is run
ming a press agency to put itself in
the most favorable light before the
advocate special measures which it is
the duty of congress TO pass upon.
your personal examination will enable
you to judge. ] shall be most glad
TO have brought to my attention any
published matter suspected to have
been given out or in any way inspired
by the forest service which trans-
crosses the limits OF propriety or the
strictly legitimate field of the service"
Then he adds:
In point of fact, however. any press
bureau would certainly defeat itself.
1t could not hope to escape discovery
by the corps of newspaper corre-
spondents in Washington. The arts
of the press agent are transparent to
any newspaperman. Attempts at self
laudation by the forest service would
simply be cut out of matter trans
mitted by the correspondent, so that
the result sought would be lost, while
a very different result would be OBJ
tained-the discovery by the corre-
spondents of transgression of official
propriety which would suffice in their
hands TO give the service quite enough
Of public notice for the time being
AVOIDS NAME OF SERVICE