Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-02-28
PRESS ETHICS
At CIVIC FORUM
Prof. J. H. Paul Delivers a Lee
ture on the Duty of the
Newspapers.
CHOICE OF CLEANEST NEWS
And Devotion to the Rights OF the
People Named as Marks
or the Best.


At the meeting of the Civic Forum
Sunday evening in the Unitarian hall o
this city. Prof. ]. H Paul of the Uni
vorsity of Utah delivered an address OF
Newspaper Ethics" The Rcv. VIM
Thurston Brown presided and made flt'
ting Introductory remarks and clos
ing comments A lively discussion fol
lowed the lecture, a number OF the
speakers criticizing the daily papers In
strong terms. The address was well
received and frequently applauded- In
part 1t was as follows
THE FIRST DUTY.
1.-THE first duty of the newspaper is to
print the news-not, of course, every
thing that happens, but as much as
possible of those happenings that es-
pecially interest or concern the entire
public. But this daily record should be
made in such manner that II eXhlolts,
exalts, and honors the best In human
action, iu preference to choosing mainly
that which tends TO degrade our ideals
as to what kind of persons other human
beings really are. The best newspaper
would print as much as possible of the
noble, the strong, the heroic, aspect OF
life. and as little as might be Of tho
weak, the unworthy. and the criminal
side. The public paper is our daily
intellectual food. 1t should keep before
us constant reminders of that vast and
unnoticed heroism among the people
that Is being enacted daily In all the
walks of life. Types of the uncon-
quered will. the achievements of men
of science, the triumphs OF art, the
growth of democracy. the elevation OF
the masses, the liberation OF the slaves
or the downtrodden. the coming actual
equality OF men-these are among the
things which are more excellent that
would tend TO the creation of higher
standard of newspaper ethics IL 1t were
more fully observed by the press"
REPORTERS ARE TRUTHFUL.
The speaker strongly condemned the
prevalent ridicule and perversion of the
meaning and arguments of the other
fellows as given in some papers, and
added that he could acquit the average
reporter OF any Intentional perversion
of the meaning of utterances in public
meetings. Reporters nearly always
try to present the facts or arguments
as they understand them. Sometimes,
however, the copy thus turned In is
changed by the managing editor. or Is
given a heading or a few Introductory
lines that mislead the reader and ridi-
cule or misrepresent the proceedings.
RIGHTS OF THE PUBLIC.
Continuing he said: Tho worth of
any newspaper to the community may
be measured by the stand 1t takes in
relation to the rights OF the public as a
whole, as distinguished from individual
and corporate advantages. paper
that is outspoken for the protection OF
the public domain. for the conserva-
ton of the forests, the water power,
the coal and mineral deposits. the
reservoirs and the Irrigation waters;
paper that stands against the granting
away of public franchises and eX-
elusive municipal rights of any Kind.
such as the right to supply towns with
water, with electric power, with street
cars, with lights, in brief, paper that
stands agains the granting away In
perpetuity OF any franchise that con-
trolls the sale of public utility-such
a paper is In the line OF its duty. be It's
phrases ever so rough or its expres-
sions ever so unguarded or oven vio-
lent A paper that is really devoted to
the cause OF the peoples rights In these
vaster enterprises that SO vitality af-
feet the daily living as we'll as the
daily expenditure of every person In
our modern communities, Will not al
ways be edited by q person whose
marks the caste of We're de We're The
blunt truth will rise to the lips. come
surging from the breast, and even es-
cape from the point of the pen, when
man beholds the open or concealed
exploitation of an entire community by
some one or more OF these private
monopolles so aptly termed the in
tereStS-
THE RING" ORGAN.
"On the other hand the special de-
gotion of a newspaper to the purposes
Of any clique or ring, may Justly be
taken as q correct estimate of the
worth. or. rather. the worthlessness, of
that papers views upon the cause so
espoused and the faction so defended
or promoted. In our American cities
there is an eyer-present tendency
among politicians and office-seekers
TO pool their issue and By co-opera-
ton and mutual concessions OF one
clique or gang to another. finally 20
fool the people into entrustlng them
With the control or disposal of the pub
lie funds Meantime the organs seek to
aivert public attention from the doings
about other and usually irrelevant is
sues. This trick Is so frequently and
30 successfully reorted to that some
people have lost faith In Lincoln's say
ing that you can fool some of the peo-
ple all the time and all of the people
some OF the time; but you can't fool all
the people all the time 1t almost
seems that this can be done Thus,
whenever the spirit OF reform gets
rampant in New York city, the Tam
many politicians promptly talk about
he tariff and so secure the bulk OF the
Democratic vote: in Philadelphia, the
ring talks protection to home industry,
whenever municipal rottenness is made
The issue. and so secures the bulk OF
The Republican vote. This sign Is in
tallible; the substitution OF some ir-
relevant Issue OF bogey in place of a
discussion of present issues is the sure
Sign OF betrayal of the public inter-
sst-'the mark of the beast'-inYarlably
lsed to mask the political wrong doing
'f the local favorites or supporters OF a
Iubsidized or venal press"