Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-10-15
NEWSPAPER COSTS
BOOSTED BY WAR
President of Associated Press
Tells of Big Jump in
Expenses.
FRANK B. MOVES C0RRECTs
POPULAR MISCONCEPTION
Declares Conflict Lays Its Heaviest
Burdens on the Publishers of
Daily Papers.

| correcting popular mlSunderStand-
ing that great war, such as that now
being waged in Europe, or any kind of
a war. in fact, is profitable to news
papers because of the increased num-
Der of papers sold in extras" and 9TH
erwise. Frank B. Noyes, president of
the Associated Press, has written an
article for the Nations Business de-
signed to show the effect of the war
| on the business of publishing news
papers.
| He points out that an emergency
fund of 100000 which had been accu-
mulated by the Associated Press has
been eaten into at an appalling rate in
consequence of extraordinary expenses
occasioned by the war, and says that
individual great newspapers are suffer-
ing under an expense because of the
war that is simply staggering
| The Nations Business, which is the
official journal of the Chamber of Com
MERGE of the United States. publishes
the article in its issue of today.
Popular misunderstanding.
There Is perhaps no popular misun-
Outstanding more widespread than is
found in the current belief that great
war or other important happening that
causes an increased sale of newspapers
ID profitable to newspaper owners" Mr.
Noyes writes
| tesque to newspaper publisher as to
| cause the humor of it to afford some
solace to him If the hard actuaIities
| trouble him sorely.
paper is probably a heavier financial
| sunerer in the business world through
| war than any save those whose prop
erty Is physically destroyed by 1t.
Burden Heavy on Newspapers.
"On this side Of the water the bur-
den OF the present European war is
| laid heaviest on newspaper publishers
OF all our business men. This is so
| because of facts that are very easy
to understand.
The newspapers of large circulation
IN this country are almost with
The white paper for these papers costs
more than the wholesale selling price
There Is loss on every copy sold, and
| the greater the excitement, the more
extras issued. the greater the loss.
In ordinary times this loss is made
up oy advertising receipts. It Is OBJ
vious, however. that nothing is received
for the advertising in. this additional
and temporary circulation. The sad
| reverse of this is true. In all times
Of excitement advertising diminishes-
there are individual exceptions, of
course. but they are sporadic and only
prove the rule.
IT this measured the extent Of the
disaster to the newspapers that war
brings they would even then be some
what worse off than the average BUSH
ness concern. for with diminished ad-
vertising earnings they would have in
Tale Of Woe Only Begun.
1.-THE tale of woe of the newspapers
has only begun. however. The usual
| business concern. when trade is bad,
| whether from war or whatever the
cause OF the depression may be. trims
| its sails for the storm. curtaiIs the
| working force, reduces the output.
| War means to the newspaper. on the
contrary, an immediate and tremen-
dous increase to its cost of production.
Take the Associated Press, for ex-
ample This Is cooperative and non
proht-makfng organization of some 900
papers. the purpose Of which is to
facilitate the exchange of news be-
| of original news for their joint bene-
fit. In times of peace it maintains
| news bureaus in all the world centers
of news. and the cost of it's operations
| runs annually TO an enormous sum.
The little furry of the Spanish-Ameri-
can war. however, cost the Associated
Press $275,000. in addition to its nor
NAL expenses.
I'm preparation for the proverbial
| rainy .day'-which with the Associated
Press is war-an emergency fund of
100000 had been accumulated. Since
the latter part of July this has been
eaten into at an appalling rate, for the
| Associated Press must expand its corps
| of correspondents at all news points
from London to Toxic: must multiply
| its cable expenditures by fve-or by
| ten, If the censors graciously permit.
Extra Force Costs.
LAS with the Associated Press, so
with all individual newspapers. large
or small. The maintaining Of editorial
and mechanical forces during unusual
| hours to provide for the prompt pub
LEGATION Of declaration of war and
| great battles alone amounts to heavy
burden.
great newspapers. like those of New
York and Chicago, is considered that
the full accuracy of Gen. Sherman's
| announcement as to war Is estab-
| Iished so far as the newspaper is con-
| cerned.
| "These newspapers feel bound in the
performance of their duty to their
readers to do large amount of origi-
nal news gathering in addition to that
done for them by the Associated Press
or other news gathering organizations
ord the expense to them is simply
staggering.
Orgies Of Expense.