The Brinkley argus., 1914-07-31
BIG ntDUCHoN IN
 gAlEs fO|6ED
BRIEF ISsuED ON ACrsNo. SAYS PEOPLE WILL PROFIT BY
 ITS ADOPTION. @
NEWSPAPER MEN BOOST T
Frankly Admit Their lntsrest aNd Tsil Why Voters Should Make V 70
 state Law. sgzsss

Tho Publicity Committesssf th1 Al kansas Press Association has 1ust ie- sued 32-page brief in behalf or Act No. 3, known as the Publicity BitA which will be voted upon under the lni- tiative and Referendum at the -Septem' Der election. This measure vas 1ni- tiated by the Press Association with the signatures of 1892 voters to the initiative petition, only 13.6oo sigma lures being necessary under the l. & R. Amendment No. 10.
 The brief just issued is in the form of m, address to the voters Of ArKan- sas, and is an. exhaustive review of the provisions of Act No. 3. It's needs and benefits as seen by the Arkansas Press Association.
 Tho brief begins with an admission on the part of the newspaper men: or the state of their interest in the Dlll. but points out that "the benefits that will accrue to the state are vast ln comparison with the benefits to the press" A thorough and frank discus sion of each section of the bill is given to the public, together with an esti- mate of the cost, but the. newspaper men believe that the bill will reduce rather than increase taxes. by elimi- hating graft and extravagance and putting property on the tax rolls which hitherto has gone unassessed.
 The brief, in part, follows:
 Newspapers sFInanclaiiy 4sntsrssted.
 "The newspaper men of Arkansas admit their. interest in Act Mo-. 5. They will profit by 1t financially, if adopted by, the people. Tho Arkansas Press Association has no disposition to shield its interest. Arkansas news papers have always stood for the best interest8of the state, and will continue to do so. They have condemned treacherys in matters ofslegislation, as we'll as in other official circles, and they have consistently, sought to in- form the people accurately on. every question of public interest. The origin of, and the motive for, any, public proposition, it's evils or benefits, and any private interests which might be involved, are all matters which the people should know, and the Pressa of the state h not yet ready to turn from it's practice of informing the public fully and accurately. Therefore. we come to the, people with an open and frank declaration that we. who initia- ted Act No. 3, ares financially inter ested in 1t.
 What is tho extent of ofIthaksinterest?
 Act No.~s provides that all apubli- cations made unCer tishalL be made in thes newspaper. and that the newspa- pers shall be paid for fhfsservice In other words. thefsnswspaper ameny y<of Arkansas are seeking to sell the stuta some of theirsAdsertising space. aThe purpose of this hrtef is to s4sll you how and why. sThe0qnestiona1er syoa to decide is whether or otsyouswam& the space. sls
 People -Aleo interested. s.s@s
 '.But while the newspaper men viii profit from the operations of Act NO. :, the people of Arkansas will al6o profit The benefits that will accrue to the State are vast in comparf101 with the benefits to the Pres. Tho newspapers will give the state 'v4luo received They are not asking Tor graft. They have proposed In Act No. 3 fair exchangesof advertising space for some of the people . money. tf6de which they believe will be tho most profitable investment the State offAr. kansas ever made If the Press sdfd not believe Act Noss3 was good fns vestment for Arkansas. the Press would be the4 last 4dnstituti0n sin tie state to propose and urge it@upon@ the people" tssss'
 Here the brief indulgsse 4n . casual review of the history and development of Arkansas and of. the part the news papers have played%in that. progress. It also discusses Ather duty of the state to it's Press and the duty Of the sPress to its state. FurthersaleBg 1t says: -as
 The Press Must- Oe Free.
 ''The Fayetteville Daily said recently fin discussion of Act No9 6. sssWAAt Arkansas most needssis free and ill- dependent Press and ran economical administrations of thee afFairs-sof state ,. The , st way to insure m economical administration Of affairs is to srout the grafters through publicity And one of the good ways to make the Press free andsindepeadent Is forathe public to support 1t Loyalty, so that it will he at TO time, dependent upon, or tempted to turn to, designing politi- clans and other evil in fluences for its existence. a
 But, to be free and Independent, the Press needs no patronage for which it cannot render value received 2 It asks the state to incur no expense that should not be incurred It coun- sells the closest economy, and advises no publicity at public expense that the state should not have, and that its constituents are not entitled to. It is asking that the state recognize the newspapers by having such publica- tions, as 1t requires. made in the news papers of Arkansas, rather than through other mediums whicn may take the money out of the state and result in poor service to the people. k
 "In presenting Act No. 3. the news papers are not asking the state to make publications simply to provide revenue for the Press. but they are asking the state to publish in the newspapers the information which the