Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-31


lE &Nl friends, the heeltlers. The
kSIzzEs2 independent journal is all but
unknown; every newspaper is
a party organ, and everyone of them
goes its full length in praise of its
candidates and in derogation of those
of the other party, The Liberal news
papers refer to their Conservative con-
temporaries as the Yellow Press, al
ways with capital letters. The Tories
retort by calling the Radical papers
"socialistic rags" But neither ever ad-
mits defects in its own party or sees
virtue in the opposition. 1t may be
said that many American newspapers
are quite the same during political
campaigns and it is true in many
instances, so far as the editorial col
umns are concerned. But no daily
newspaper in the United States how
ever partisan on it's editorial page,
would dare to use its news columns as
do the British papers.
The British press for so many years
has congratulated itself upon its su
periority above American journalism
that even Americans are inclined to
credit the English boasts. II is true
that big headlines are not used in the
English papers, and therefore the out
ward and visible signs SO often as
sociated with yellow journalism are
not in evidence n England But it is
possible to be yellow" in small type
and even under small headlines which
give no hint whatever of the nature
or character Of the article which fol-
kloWs The methods of the British press
in campaign time leave no doubt on
that score
In the first place, nearly every Eng
lish newspaper occupies the relation of
"organ" to one of the two principal par
ties, and nearly everyone is further
identified with some particular clique
or following. The party organs are as
slavishly devoted to partisan interests
as American newspapers were forty
years ago.
During this parliamentary campaign
one of the London evening papers pub
lished an article upon the sensational
press in the United States, declaring
that the authorities in America rec
ognized that something must be done
to correct the evils of the utter and
absolute untrustworthiness of the
American press. In the same article
it was charged that thoughtful Ameri-
cans fear that the United States is
about to come under the domination of
a newspaper oligarchy, representing the
worst and most sensational section of
the American press. The article con-
cluded with an indictment of the Amer
lean newspapers for the 'impropriety
of each newspaper having its own pol
icy with respect to public affairs.
At that time the campaign was in its
climacteric week, and the newspapers
were flooded with election news-vastly
more space being devoted to politics
than is given by American newspapers.
one newspaper had a review, by con-
stituencies, of all the London and near
by contests In each and every case
the special correspondent pointed out
that the right man" could not possibly
fail of election. An opposition neWspa-
per on the same day, in the news col
umns, claimed every one of these seats
for its party, each paper depIoring the
indecent tactics OF the opposition party
in each constituency, and each accused
the other of all sorts of outrages and
misdemeanOrs.
Mr. Iloyd-George in a speech about
the merchant marine referred to the
British tonnage of eleven millions.
The telegraph wires got twisted and in
many newspapers he was made to say
100 900, 900. The error was palpable,
but the Conservative press gave great
space and prominent headlines to
what was called another example of
the chancellors ineXactitude. Imme-
diate correction was made, of course,
but many of the papers did not print
it. One of the principal morning
papers printed the correction, but
placed it without a headline as a two
line note under a letter from a con-
tributor gently calling Mr.. Lloyd
George a liar. over the whole was a
prominent headline, "The Chancellor's
Error"
The principal Liberal newspapers,
instead of devoting space to an ex-
position of the issues they represent
ed printed long accounts of the heck
ling of peers and stories of the un-
popularity of the Tory leaders They
made no effort to refute the arguments
of the other party by publishing news
articles giving the facts in the con-
troversy, but contented themselves
with long and heavy editorials about
the constitutional questions involved.
The news columns were devoted en-
tirely to the smallest items of incon-
seuuential news from the various local
fights-not one in thousand of which
could get by the desk of an American
news editor.
The Conservative newspapers We're
much more effective in their style of
campaigning, although they. laid them
selves open to the charge of repre-
senting the yellowest of all yellow
Journalism. To read a stout Tory
paper during the campaign one would