The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-10-29
HANpLTNG CAMPAIGN NEWS.

| Considerable discussion has been
going on among the voters during the
campaign, which is just now well on
the ebb. of the manner in which the
political news as 1t has developed
throughout the country has been
handled by the newspapers, and in
some instances not handled by them.
And a remark was overheard the
other day to the effect that the Asso-
ciated Press seemed to be favoring
Mr.. Bryan and the Democratic end
of 1t. This appeared to be so be-
cause frequently during the campaign
in the newspapers which have
printed all of the news Of the cam
paign regardless of the fact as to
whether it was Democratic news or
Republican news. as all real news
papers should and as the State Jour
nal has tried to do in view of the i'm
portant considerations involved. there
would be much more news about Mr.
Bryan's speechmaking tours than
there was about similar undertakings
of Mr.. Taft.
But nothing could be further from
the truth than that the Associated
Press has favored Mr.. Bryan and the
Democratic party in its handling OF
political news of the campaign. The
news report of the Associated Press
ought to be just as it is-absolutely
non-partisan in the handling OF politi-
cal news and events. The very nature
of its service makes this g. necessity
which cannot be avoided and which
could not be disregarded by the great
est news gathering agency that the
world has ever known If 1t hoped TO
continue in a healthy existence. For
instance in many cities there are two
evening papers, or two or more morn
ing newspapers which get Identical
news reports from the Associated
Press and which newspapers are
radically partisan on either sides of
the campaign. If the report of the
Associated Press was partisanally IN
favor of either of the prominent
political parties the papers taking its
service and having opposite political
leanings would soon rebel and ind
means of getting some other service,
even if a new one had to be created
There is no doubt. however, that on
many days the newspapers taking the
Associated Press report and printing
all the news on both sides of the cam
naien as the State Journal and others
of them have done, but as a few
others have been glaringly deficient OF
doing, have contained more Bryan
news than Taft news. But there has
been an adequate reason for this and
ii is not that the Associated Press has
favored the Democratic cause. 1t is
because Mr. Bryan and the Democrats
have created more news.
In a speech making tour when Mr..
Taft will! make a dozen or more
speeches in a day. many OF these
speeches will be repetitions. On the
other hand in a similar tour by Mr..
Bryan, the Democratic candidate will
talk on a greater variety of topics.
Now 1t would be a waste of words and
energy for the Associated Press to
send out full reports of Mr.. Taft's
reiterated speeches and 1t would be a
waste of space and energy for news
papers to print these reiterated
speeches even If they came to them.
On the other hand the Associated
Press would not be doing it's full duty
II it did not cover the greater variety
of speeches made by Mr.. Bryan and
it would be negligence on the part of
honest newspapers who believe in CIV
ing their public all the news if they
did not print them. And so there is
good reason why the Associated Press
and the newspapers have given more
space to Mr.. Bryan and the Demo-
cratic doings on several occasions
than they have to Mr.. Taft. This can
be taken in no way as a reflection on
Mr.. Taft as a campaigner or his
cause because he is campaigning on
the theory which many politicians
have strong belief in and with good
reason-that of picking out the i'm
portant issues of the campaign and
driving the truths home about them
with sledge hammer blows and with
constant repetitions before ever chang
ing audiences.