The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-01-11
BY THURBER LEWIS

nat COInlCdl 1drCe, ne GUHI
Page" is now tickling the risibles
of the white-collared boys and the
high school girls of Chicago with
its gloritication of the cynical press
and its wise-cracks and cuss~words.
The lads chuckle and the lassies
gasp at the disregard of the hard
boiled managing editor of the Ex-
aminer for all social graces and poll
teal "ethics." They take seriously
the propaganda of the play which is
summed up in the phrase "the in
dependent power of the press" The
raps it takes al Hearst's Examiner,
the Tribune and the Afternoon papers
are really love taps. 1t idealizes
journalism for journalism's sake.
And views the press of Chicago as
influencing politics.
Money Rules Papers.
The correct formulas are "jour-
ralism for advertising's sake" And
the press and politics are in the same
pot and both are stirred by Sasa
insult, power magnate, Geo. M. Rey-
nolds, banker, James Simpson, mer-
chant hing, Joseph 7. Ryerson, steel
baron and the other masters of Chi
cago's slave pens.
If politics in Chicago are rotten to
The core, the press is no less so. The
history of journalism in Chicago,
etep by step with its corrupt poll
tics, has been marked by thuggery,
bribery and graft at every stage.
From long before the time when
the old Tribune, Post, Record and
Inter-Ocean shrieked for the blood
Of Parsons and the other Haymarket
victims down through the strike
lreaking press-orgy Of the Lands
award days, the press of Chicago
has been the very complication
of terror against the working class.
Incited War on Negroes
During the war the Tribune adj
vocated lynch-law against the dis
senters; at the time of the race
riots all the papers covertly melted
the frenzied mobs against Negro
workers; during the steel strike they
called for the rushing of troops to
Gary; they have always been first
to demand injunctions in all strikes;
they asked for the blood of Sacco
and Vanzetti.
It may seem trite to say these
things. We all know that the press
is the instrument of the bosses
against the workers. But the trouble
is that the $3.50 am. elevateds and
the $50 pm. street cars are white
with Tribs, Examiners, Posts, Jour
nails. Newses and Americans.
The only bright spot in the field
of daily journalism in Chicago was
the existence beginning five years
ago of the Daily Worker which chal-
lenged the capitalist press here fol-
three years. The needs of the Com
munist movement required the NOV
ing of the "Daily Worker" to New
York. 1t is, of course, doing the
same service there that it did here
and its national edition is bravely
irving to keep up with the require
rnents of the movement elsewhere
including Chicago. 1t is natural thai
when the staff was in Chicago ane
the papers came hot off the pres:
here. that more interest would bt
taken in it.
But interest in it mustn't be al
lowed to lag. We can't have our owl
Daily here yet. We have got to g
on the theory that the national edi
ton is published in Chicago. Later
the theory can become fact.
The belief that you can't buck the
power Of the daily capitalist press
is a bogus one. 1t has power, yes
The power of mighty business in
situations (the Tribune does an an
nual business of better than $780,.
000,00000) and in the fact that its
news, sports, features, etc, are reac
by everyone. But among the work
ers, the capitalist press is notorious.
~ uninfIuential. This is especially
true of Chicago. "The Worlds Great.
est Newspaper" the Tribune (on &C.
count of the thirty million). is men
tally spit upon by most Chicago