The newspaper., 1910-01-21

the truth about the other fellow.
1.-THE journalist must do more than
play the mirror to humanity. He
must comment upon the picture his
mirror shows. Indeed, it takes the
comment to make clear the picture.
Even the Bible needs the preached
word for Interpretation, the foolish
ness of preaching. In his columns OF
comment the interpreter becomes
also an advocate and a judge. He
presents the facts OF human life, the
changing experiences of every day,
seizes upon some facts and expert
ences for comment, and bases there
upon his argument, gives other facts
and pronounces judgment thereupon,
and finally interprets the whole body
of facts for those who read his
journal.
"It is often said that journalism in
its Interpretation places too large
emphasis upon the diseases that af-
fiict society-the sorrow, the sensa-
ton and the crime. Perhaps this is
true. 1t must be remembered, how
ever, that no artists picture would
fairly represent the actual facts OF
life that did not include large space
given to sin and shame and suffering.
The remedy for the diseases of the
body polite is. first, publicity.
Modern journalist has high warrant
for this publicity.
1.-The best journalists do not how
ever, play up'-to use the technical
phrase-the bad deeds. except by
way of warning or condemnation.
As the profession OF the interpreter,
journalism means right selection
from the facts OF life. From the great
mass of news which comes crowding
into each newspaper Office must be
chosen that which is interest to the
people-for the favor of the public Is
the breath OF life to the honest
newspaper-and all else must he
eliminated. The journalist Is con-
fronted with temptation to be an
iconoclast as well as IA cynic. He is
the first progressive OF every COM
munity. Progress is largely ques-
tion OF putting behind. There is
nothing more tyrannical than pre-
cedent. There are no precedents In
journalism. Precedent has muir
dered more progress than ignorance
ever did. Ii Is the man who does
not remember-or more properly
speaking, the man who knows how
to forget what he remembers-who
pushes forward the worlds work.
Happy the man who can ring off
when he desires. Heaven Is a place
where people forget; hell .s where
they remember. There Is no progIess
except at the expense of precedent
precedent, which is the past crystal
lized In recollection.
Il hear criticism sometimes OF the
Of the newspaper. The
reporter. you say, has not gotten
his facts straight. He has put his
..acts In wrong prosortion. He has
your most brilliant cpl
grams. Perhaps, but the Intentional
Is so rare as to he a
negligible quantity. The errors and
are seldom the trained,
reporters fault. IL may
be that he understood you to say
that which he quotes you as saying
and that which wns not your mean
ing. More cleurness of expression
upon your part might have helped
to prevent misquotHtIon. My ex-
perience with reporters IL that the
man quoted Is more often made to
say things that he meant but did not
utter than to say things that he ut
tered and did not mean.
''lt is difficult to get facts free from
admixture OF error from sometimes
unwilling sources and to get them
in time for the newspapers first edi-
tion or it's last. Even after many
centuries, there are errors of facts in
the Book we hold inspired. For SER
mons preached upon mlsinterpreta-
tion Of the Book, Mary Magdalene II
alive could successfully maintain
action for slander against many a
preacher. When the difficulties which
lie in the way OF good journalism, OF
honest, faithful reporting, OF wise,
helpful comment and Interpretation,
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