Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-04-08

Defense of the newspaper was the
Keynote OF the interesting talk given,
Monday forenoon by Sam E. Conner,
special writer for the Lewiston Jour-
nal, In speaking at the Cony High
school assembly hall before the stu
dent body and faculty.
Tne Sophomore class had charge
or the Monday morning assembly
and Howard Stiles, president of the
second year class. presided at the ex-
ercises.
Mr.. Conner in the course Of his
remarks said that most of the people
In the world would have little
knowledge of what was taking place
i'll the world were il not for the
newspapers and yet they knew little
OF how paper was made. They knew
that there We're reporters, editors.
typesetters. presses and that was
about as far as general public in
! formation went. He then briefly
outlined the various functions Of
these factors in the making of a
paper and how they We're cordinat-
ed so as to bring about the perfect
product which told the news.
Contrasting the difference be-
tween the newspapers of the past
,, and today he referred to experiences
he had a few years ago In securing
| material for a series of stories on the
history of Maine and called atten-
ton to how much differently the
constitutional convention of 1920
was reported in the old Portland
Argus than it would be handled in
any Of the present day Maine pa
pers. STILL" said Mr.. Conner, "it was
and is from the files of that old pub
lication that the early history of
Maine was and must be written"
! A common expression with people
| Is, said the speaker, "Oh, that's
| newspaper talk" He felt sure that
those who used it did not mean it.
II they did they would not read the
papers. because folks did not turn
to u thing they regarded as unre-
liable for information.
Accuracy, declared Mr.. Conner. is
the first thing they try to teach a
, young reporter. A trouble why peo-
, pie frequently felt sure the newspa-
per was in error in regard to the
facts of n case was because the
printed story did not agree with
what they knew. Instantly, they
i would say the paper is wrong. If, in
stead of branding the printed arti-
Gle as incorrect they would stop to
think that. possibly they did not
! have all the information, that they
nad not interviewed all tle persons
who might know something Of the
matter, while the reporter had done
| so and had written his story with a
knowledge of all these different an
! giles they would quickly realize that,
possibly, it was they and not the pa
per which was at fault.
The speaker then devoted some
| time to explaining the manner in
which a big story is handled, using
as illustration the famous Burke
murder trial and the recent State
convention at Portland, as two diff
| ferent types of news events which
required especial means of caring
| fer by the newspapers. He told some
| stories of newspaper experience
during the years in which he had
been engaged as a reporter in Maine.
| After the assembly Mr.. Conner
| conferred with the editors of the
Cony Cue and gave them many val
liable suggestions for the improve
ment of different parts of the pa
| per.
| Edwin c. Burleigh, an editor of the
Kennebec Journal and j. Clement
Murphy, Associated Press cores
pondent, were among the guests at
the Monday morning assembly.