The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1918-10-05
INFLUENCE OF THE
MODERN. NEWSPAPER
DEARY CITIZEN TELLS EDITOR
OF LOCAL PAPER SOME
WHOLESOME FACTS

Over the signature "A Reader tn
Latah County Press, one of the county
brightest newspapers, containing the fol
lowing communication which is so full
of good, sound sense tina it is repub-
lished with the hope that those who are
so prone to c~riticise newspapers ma,
read and profit by it. The article fol
lows:
ITO the Editor:
May l speak through your column:
in the expression of a few opinions cor-
corning the modern newspapers? | fear
that in the past |, as well as others, have
not sufficiently appreciated the value OF
the newspaper-one of the most wonder
full of modern inventions.
las an illustration of the development
of the printing business, it has been esti-
mated that if Benjamin Franklin should
step UP and take charge of the Saturday
Evening Post as it is now, bringing his
facilities with him, it would take him
nineteen years to print a single weekly.
edition.
There would certainly be a lonesome
and dissatisfied lot of people in this
country if all the newspapers were dis
continued a few weeks for some reason.
| cannot think of a class of people, nor
of individuals of my acquaintance, who
do not need the newspapers. There is
hardly a person in the country, who can
read, who does not read the newspaper
these days and feel that it is almost in
dispensible.
"A few among the religious class have
in times past criticised the Newspapers
quite severely. However, even they are
coming more and more to realize that
the newspaper is an important help in
R1hla. ct11dy How m thof hop RaCo,1co
it records the many events of this time |
which the Bible writers predicted thou
sands of years ago. Careful Bible stu
can hardly read a single copy of
any live paper now without reading of
happenings that are in direct %fulfillment
of Bible prophecies.
"Those who feel like criticising the
newspaper should perhaps rea-
that they are partly to blame for
the publication of so many features
they consider Objectionable. There
is probably nothing the average editor
desires more than to publish the things
will be interesting and uplifting to
he readers Of his paper; but if his read
ers demand blood and thunder s%tories,'
and all the details of every crime, and
Of every demoralizing occurrence, the
editor must not be blamed too much for
DuDllSllllS lldl 0ldSS Vi lSdQllS- IL |
more good people would express to edi-
-ors and publishers their appreciation of
he good and uplifting articles which ap-
pear in their papers, the editor would
doubtless find more room for such arti-
and less for the other kind.
But on the other hand, we should not
ay all the blame on the editors and pub
ishers if we waste our time reading
Kings which are of no value to us. The
paper was not prepared for our
special benefit; and we are expected to
Use our own wisdom and judgment in
only those things which we find
to us. 1t is the aim of the editors
md publishers to print such a variety Of
in every paper that every reader
will find something which more than
epays and the time spent in reading it.
in this day when of the making of
looks there is no end and when there
re more than 24,OO0 periodicals publish
d in this country, a knowledge of what
0 read and how to read it is of great ,
alue. Let us train ourselves in the I;
hoice of our reading, instead of trying :
) get the editors to publish only that !
f which we approve.
Very truly yours. :
"a READER" .