Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-05-15
AGENCY DOESNOT
SUPPRESS NEWS.
Oswald G.. Willard of New York
Evening Post Defends the
Associated Press.

Lawrence, Kan. May 15.-Oswald @.
Willard of the New York evening Post,
addressed the Kansas newspaper con-
ference at the University OF Kansas.
He dealt particularly with the ailega-
lions coming from one quarter or an
other to the effect that newspapers
and news agencies suppressed news.
IF one could believe all that one
heard" he said, "a true picture of the
heads of the press would portray them
perpetually behind the arras arrang-
ing some plot or other. Men who scent
Wholesale conspiracies in other in
dividuals usually wind up in the OBJ
servation wards of our hospitals, but
your next-door neighbor is privileged
to believe in day and night conspira-
cies of the press without fear of hav-
ing his sanity questioned. Indeed so
may be exalted by his doubt And so
We hear of agreements among news
papers to ignore this happening, to
suppress that and to villify this or that
defender of the rights of the people.
In New York City, so deep are the
clefts between the various newspapers,
that you could never possibly get their
nedO TO SIT uOWn dTOuuu u lapicS hiuSH
less break bread together.
although the law has compelled us
of re metropolitan press to print the
names of all the stockholders and bond
holders for year past, 1t did not sur
prise me to read an article in cur
rent magazine by a distinguished citi-
zen of Indiana to the effect that news
papers ought to be compelled to tell
the influences behind them / have
so often heard this rumor that | have
mortgaged myself to Wall street, with
the name and address of the banker,
that | am surprised at nothing. Not If
he should throw his private books open
to a Bristow or a LaFollette, could
New York editor hope to down this
entertaining fiction. He would only
hear that his books were doctored, or
that he was hiding behind somebody |
elses skirts, or that it was the point
of view of the men he associated with |
that really did the mischief-so dis |
credited are newspaper managers with |
sections of the people and GER
tain cross-very croSs-Sections of |
the politicians.
. IF you think | eXaggerate, please |
bear in mind the bitter attacks on
the Associated Press the present win
ter has Witnessed. 1t has been assail-
ed as a monopoly, and on one forum
after another attacked as an organized
to suppress every happen
ing that affects Progress and Radical
a capital p and r. Social
sts, labor men and progressives alike
1enounce il, because it does not carry
heir propaganda. Negroes criticise
t because it brings out of the south
news only of their crimes, and never
If their honorable achievements. Some
never fail to berate it
when their other hobbies are for the
moment exhausted.
Cautiously enough. the bonafide I
of great wealth equally 1
lenounce it as an association controll- {
ID by the mob, and, therefore, fearing {
o tell the truth about them. At least !
his was the excuse offered by bribe-
liver who thought he was buying some /
Iew York newspapers for a trust; he &
merely wished to secure justice for his
lient, to get their side of famous 1
.ase into print-all this when the other
ide to the controversy was protest, /