The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-06-09
NEWSPAPER ETHICS.

Ono of the comjcal things in the
newspaper limo is. that every onco in
while the Deseret News, spotted all
over with falsehood. trickery. misrep.
regentation, and malice, comes out III
purportcd support of higher grade of
newspaper ethics II is the most per
sisteut and indecent vioater OF news
paper ethics, probably Of any news
paper in tho United States. abusing
good men without stint, falsely and in
decently. And still it is the readiest
to cry out in favor Of other papers OBJ
serving those ethics.
Last night in this line it had the
following editorial paragraph, the be
ginning OF disquisition on the sub,
ject:
II is very strange that newspaper writ
ers I'm controversy indulge in language
which they would not care to use in a
face TO face discussion, and 1t Is stlll
more strange thar the public accepts the
most enormous outraSes upon good man
ners, in print. with perfect Indifference.
Tho result is the lowering OF the tone OF
some American newspapers TO a level be
low that occupied by the traders on the
famous nsh market In Bergen. Only the
other day the local saloon organ, in It's
defense OF drinking. referred TO the
respectful terms. we dare say the
writer would not care To say to him per-
sonaly what he feels at liberty to write
In the obscurity OF his office. Good man
nors would prevent II. But In that news
paper office, there Is no regard for either
manners, or truth,
II ought not to be strange TO the
editor of the News that newspaper
writers in controversy indulge in
language they would NOT care to use
in face TO face discussion. because
that is what the editor of the News is
always doing. The News is constantly
msrepresentiug, constantly lying, con.
stantly assailing people mahciously,
mendaciously, aud without any excuse
whatever, except that they do not
agree with it on certain of its bigotod
and fanatical propositions. With re
spect to what the editor of tho ''Iocal
saloon organ' (this being one of the
News s characteristic misrepresenta.
lions and false accusations against The
Tribune, and n conspicuous violation of
the very ethics which, in the article
from which the quotation is made, is
pleaded for) has said, it may be use
full to note that The Tribune has
made no defense of drinking; it is not
referring TO the President of the
Mormon church in disrespectful terms.
but only as the argument required
us, in order to controvert his positions
The writer in The Tribune would un.
doubtedly say to President Smith
the things that be says with respect
10 him editorially, should the occasion
offer. The Tribune is simply pointing
out where he fails in his positions to
ought to measure up 10 in certain par.
ticulars as they come on for treatment
from day to day. So far as we are
concerned, we sec no objection to stat.
ing the same thing TO President Smith
face TO face in case he should say face
to face the things that he is quoted as
saying to various persons and audi.
euces, while to catch the editor Of the
News in one of his fits of vituperation
and tell him face to face what we
think of him would be bliss without
alloy. We hold that a writer should
write what he honestly thinks, and en-,
deavor so TO do, and there should be
no shrinking in case the circumstances
call for it, in saying the same things
face to face, to anybody on earth
We will add, that nothing would be
more agreeable to US than TO talk over
all matters nj issue with President
Smith, face to face, with the utmost
candor on both sides and no rancor on
either