New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-03
State Honest Advertising" Law Ignored by
Press and Oueerly Interpreted by Courts
All Advertising More or Less Crooked
Is Excuse of Observation-Disclosures
Club Fights Unaided for Cleanup

- b would he the first and severes sufferers from clean
up campaign need and one that bound
to find later For was there city Per for
revolt against advertising conditions than San Francisco
lie official advertising club thoroughly live wide awake and
representative organization for the tight IT could but
find weapon Its progressive merchants are openly as
eusted with present conditions Its advertising experts realizing
that one Of the poorest cities the country for their business
Judged by the volume of advertising done anxousy
seeking method of reform and improvement In the face
of all this nothing happens The newspapers are sitting on
the lid.
Wbvp AS nearly as can determine. their attitude is due
ostchke of modern conditions IN the
Using world They stuck their heads deep the sands
f nrede obstnacy and tradition that such portion OF them
as remains oude-a somewhat ignobe spectace-s Puzzlms
to identify by any modern standards lake tor example, the
ictum Fremont Older publisher OF The Bulletin when he was
approached by the or public health orsanHaon
who urged him drop from the OF his paper The Bulletin
the indecent and notwithstanding sexual quackery advertise
1nens which carried Mr. Older did deny that the claims
made by the quacks false. But, said he:
All advertising less crooked 1T we start TO draw
the line. we never know where to stop
Mr. Oder's cynical opinion of course anachronsm 1t
belongs properly to the ages of advertising when the circus
poster was the model for style and the patent medicine testimonial
the pattern ethics Thanks largely to The Bulletin and Its rva
uphold the doctrine of cdreat epor in every
fake filled issue San Francisco has wholly emerged from the
dark ages But to state all the local advertising crooked
s the kind of stupid libel which desperately seeking to
excuse the ndefensbe sometimes driven there is no neon
Siderable volume Of strictly honorable advertising the local field
But is far ounumbered by the advertising of the myopc type
which still blinking the light which can't quite bring itself to
believe that honesty print a sound, paying policy
Strange contrasts exist the local advertising situation AS
retail trade San Francisco ranks high As retail adve
Using centre ranks low There hardly dozen OF large
space who regularly and consistently the local press
whereas Detroit and Minneapolis cities of about the rank
have than hundred such regular each his
would indicate that local have little faith in the efficacy
local press from advert viewpoint which hardly
surprising 1t had the merchants but the vision to
see that the public lacks confidence in the excessive claims
which make up the bulk of the stores arguments
San Francisco has large and potentially powerful retail
merchants organization which omuates certain rules for its
protection and that purchasing public Yet its members
openly violate their agreement in their advertising
Several the prominent San Francisco stores hew as
strictly line of truth advertisers the United
States Others among the conspicuous local advertisers Of
the schock type In the newspapers can Ind
the high class constructive confidence building copy OF the de-
partment neghborcd nd aned by the low class de-
stuctve exploitation of the shycr enter
pnses
San Francisco has an excellent city ordinance fobddng the
distribution of advertising for the relief of veneea
diseases Having enacted the city has forgotten 1t
dead letter, daily violated by the newspapers.
The honest advertising law of California supposedly
plying Francisco well other of the stae) de
ces guilty of any advertiser putting forth
advertisement which statement representation or assertion is
false any respect which deceptive misleading
which which, the exercise or
should be known be false deceptive misleading
San Francisco Judge with perfectly clear test before him.
brought through the local advertising club rendered decision
which has made the law a laughing stock.
1t might be supposed that the department stores with sound
GOODS 10 sell would take measures protect themselves from the
destructive and unfair competition OF advertisers with worthless
or irepesened merchandise dispose Of And indeed they
did get together meeting for the purpose of influencing the
newspapers to cut the offensive species Of akey
of the of Hale Brothers thus delivered
himself of a profound thought:
IF the papers this bad stuff they'll raise rates
and We II all have to pay.
What Mr. Hacs somewhat medieval mentality failed to
grasp the to rates after cleaning
I'd the increased confidence of the public would result in
than nropoonae return the straight advertiser The differ
ence in pulling power between advertising medium which the
ubic trusts and advertising medium which dusts
beyond figures.
Deepe in the murk OF the dark ages than either Publisher
Older or Merchant Hale Judge Matthew Brady who prcdes
Que, e local police Judge Brady made his mperishablc