Evening star., 1925-03-08
BY EDWARD McKERNON
Superintendent OF the Eastern Division of
the Associated Press
(From an address delivered by Mr. McKernon at
the Massachusetts, Institute of Technology.)


VALUE an opportunity to give to men who
are working along scientific lines what !
believe will be a idea Of the Asso-
ciated Press. In these days when mans
ingenuity and study afford almost daily
surprises the scientific side of things is likely
to be overemphasized, and 1t is quite possible
that in your minds the prestige of the Asso-
ciated Press may be due largely to the spec
tacular things that 1t does from time to time
To be sure, in its business of gathering and
distributing news the Associated Press has
taken advantage Of every device OF wit and
science that would serve it's purpose. But so
has the butcher. the baker and the candlestick
maker. according to their lights and the ext
gencies of competition. That is all very well.
but wish you to know that the greatness OF
the Associated Press is not to be found in It's
mechanical supremacy. its thousands Of miles
of telegraph wire, the perfection of it's
human machinery, but rather in its fidelity to
the supreme mission that gave 1t birth.
That mission was first, to free the press OF
the country frcm the DONNA tion of a few men
Who because of their control of certain
sources and their commercial alliances with
various groups of newspapers, were in posi-
tion to dictate largely what news should be
published and what should not be pub
lshed, and to treat events according to their
personal ideas. Next, to supply the reading
public with non-partisan report that should
reflect accurately important events without any
suggestion OF the conclusions to be drawn from
the facts reflected. In other words. to replace
press individually partisan and collectively
commercial with a daily chronicle of events,
scientific, If you please. in the sense that it was
based on knowledge gained and verified by
exact observation and correct thinking"
Never Comments on News.
If you do not remember anything else that 1
say tonight, remember this. The outstanding
and distinctive characteristic of the Associated
Press is that 1t comments on the news.
yIya hat tbn ORA fdnrf dali arAA an
address; we may not say that it was a good
address. That is for the reader to determine
for himself. The Associated Press the
first and, believe. is today the only news
Organization in the world that presents only
facts-unadorned facts-and compels the reader
to form his opinion these facts Tho
tremendous Importance to the public of this
policy will be made clear by moments re-
hection. 1t must result in public opinion
founded upon a universal knowledge of the
facts. This never have had What has
passed for public opinion has been the opinion
of the few who were informed or the transit
tory assent Of the many to some popular ap-
peal. Society has been directed in its every
activity by minority because only minority
has known. Many men have faith; relatively
few have convictions. What we accept con-
victions frequently are nothing more than men
tai habits inherited like our religion and our
politics
For 200 years the newspapers of America, by
~ suggestion in their news columns largely did
the thinking for their readers. The Associated
Press lays down the cold. cruel or happy facts
and invites you to do the thinking for yourself.
John Milton caught the vision way back in
the middle 6f the seventeenth century. when in
his famous plea for unlicensed printing he
said: Give the liberty to know. to utter
and to argue freely according to conscience
above all liberties Well. when Milton had
nioldered IN his tomb in Westminster Abbey
$50 years the first amendment to our Federal
adopted. guaranteeing
nothing should be done to abridge the liberty
of the press and of speech. But great as that
victory was. the full vision of Milton had not
been realized To the American colonists free
dom Of the press and of speech meant freedom