Norwich bulletin., 1912-03-08

Yale College, March IA. Maurice
Low. American correspondent of the
London Post. gave one of the most
Interesting lectures of the winter on
Tuesday night, the first of the two
Bromley lectures on journalism. In
it, he presented the newspapers prob
lem. traces the shortcomings of the
press, and outlined paths of develop
ment end expression.
An Englishman by birth, Mr. Lows
newspaper work mas been almost en-
tirely in America. He has been in
charge of the Washington. d. c. bu
reau of the Boston Globe since 1885,
and besides his correspondence for
the London Post and London National
Review, he has made a serious study
Of American life and conditions, as is
shown In his recent book, 1.-THE Amer
lean People"
The newspaper is after money
said Cir Low. 1.-THE newspaper Of to-
day makes false pretences to get the
public custom; the newspaper propri
etor pretends to promote the welfare
Of the community and does not do 1t.
The average reader wants news of
great events. but not only the news in
its bare form; he must have explana
ton and exposition. He wants to
know the why of things, but has no
way Of finding it out, first hand. So
the paper is his last and only resort
In general, newspapers may be di-
vided into three classes: First, those
controlled by a man who has worked
his way up from the bottom, and owes
his position to industry and shrewd-
ness, not only in editorial lines, but
also along the line of ways and
means; secondly, those controlled by
men who have inherited them: third
ly, those conducted merely as flnan-
oial speeulations, political organs and
also to boost certain business con-
Germs which they are supported by;
in other words, merely business ad-
vertisements. with a veneer of pub
lie spirit to cover their nakedness.
There are still a few editors of the
old school to whom the balance sheet
is not the chief concern, but they are
the exception.
The modern newspaper follows, not
leads, the people. It would not pay
for them to run against the grain of
some of their principal patrons and
advertisers. The advertisements are
the paying part of paper; the read
ing matter is used largely as a decoy
to increase the circulation of the
paper, and so the readers, or. in other
words, the public, must be humored.
| In concluding, Mr.. Low suggested
! a school of journalism for Yale; to
| teach students to weigh values to
sift evidence; to determine the rela-
| tive importance Of events and who,
| gi1cn facts. shall appraise the motives
| Of men fairly and reach a just con-
| clusion
| If such courses, whose field would
| be to train the Judgment of the news
paper man, could be introduced in all
the universities. the public taste could
be trained, and university men, to
whom the doors Of the modern news
| paper are now practically shut, would
be in demand in this great field.
Jim Donnelly, campus policeman
since 1893, and the most famous OF
| Yale campus characters, received tan
! gible evidence this week of the re-
| gard Yale men have for him, when
the class Of 1912 voted to present him
with trip to the Olympic games at
! Stockholm this summer. For THIS
! purpose S400 Will be raised among til
members of the class and where II 6
Yale athletes are to be found next
| July, there Jim will be found also
AS he is sixty years old this year. the
gift is especially appropriate.
The new honor system in examina-
tions proposed for the Sheffield scien-
tlfic school was approved by the
senior class Of the school this week by
a vote Of 1871 The junior class vii
vote on the matter tonight, and ther
| it will be referred to the freshmen
In view Of the desirability Of such 9
| system there is little doubt as to the
| passage Of the proposed votes.
The Yale chapter of Phi Beta Kappa
held its one hundred and thirty