The Indianapolis times., 1934-01-22
Liberal Viewpoint
by DIR. HARRY ELMER BARNES.

ME bearing Of the rational recovery act and
Il the newspaper code upon the very i'm
portant question Of the freedom of the press
has produced much agitation and has provoked
large amount Of discussion.
Those American newspapers which Loyalty
are supporting the new deal and other demo-
Grating and liebral plans for reconstructing our
social and economic system can with great pro-
prlety and logic, speak out strongly in behalf
OF the freedom of the press. They are advocat-
ing the creation Of a social order compatible
with a considerable degree of intellectual
freedom
On the other hand the Tory press, which is
making most of the fuss at present about the
freedom OF the press, is skating upon very thin
Ice. In some extreme cases we find papers
shouting for an American Mussolini and in the
same breath believing loudly for journalistic
liberty. One can not say very much for the
logical acutenesS of such editors.
If the new deal fails, it seems almost in
evitable that shall have Fascist interlude
IN the United States. It hardly is tllinkable
that FaScism, conceived and administered by
the Republican old guard, could have any
permanence or success. Upon its collapse radi-
calism, probably an American brand of Com
munism, would come into control Of the stua-
ton. Under either Fascism or Communism
not the slightest trace of the freedom of the
press would be permitted.
WHEREFORE, those journals which are try
4 ing to sink the new deal are in reality work.
ing for the obliteration of every vestige of the
freedom of the press in the United States
All this appears self-evident, if one gives
even cursOry attention to the fate of the press
in contemporary Italy, Germany and Russia
In Italy, before the establishment of the
Fascist regime there were many large and
powerful papers which possessed as much
prestige and had established IS great a degree
of independence as that enjoyed by any lib
eral daily in the United States today. 1t was
not long, however before they were extinguished
completely or muzzled thoroughly.
Most of the important liberal papers either
were bought up by the government or were sup
pressed outright. All copy whatsoever on any
subject must be submitted to an official group
of Fascist censOrs before it can be printed IN
any italian newspaper. Many liberal editors
were physically assaulted and some were mur-
dered or driven into exile. In one of the best
Schneider thus summarizes the condition Of
the press under MusSolini:
"A CRITICAL discussion of the technical
n merits of a concrete issue is welcome but
the democratic luxury, eulogiStically called pub
lie opinion, is something which Fascism thinks
it can easily live without. Italy it claims is
too poor to be able to afford the continual nerv-
Gus strain and frittering away of energy. The
formula is: Criticism is allowed but not op-
position"
In Germany under Hitler, the freedom of
the press even has less standing than under
MuSsolini The National Socialist party de-
manded in its program that the severe restric-
tlonS should be placed upon German newspapers
and that newspapers which work against the
public welfare shall be forbidden
In actual administration any criticism of
Hitler has been interpreted as opposing the pub
lie welfare of Germany. On all controversial
matters, the German newspapers are no more
than rubber stamps for the Nazi government,
which either furnishes copy for the newspapers
or censorS the copy prepared by the papers. The
complete disappearance Of a free press in Hit
lerite Germany is we'll described by Richard
Neuberger in his article, Germany Under the
Choke-Bit,' in the New Republic, Nov Is, 1885.
Under the Conlmunistic regime in Russia
there is no more freedom for newspapers than
exists in Italy and Germany In the two lat
ter countries political force is used to perpetu-
ate the economic system based upon private
property and profit, while in Russia the gov
eminent interveneS to prevent the existence Of
these very things. Yet the Russian government
no more will tolerate journalistic opposition to
the Communistic regime than will the Fascist
governments any opposition to the official pol
icies Of Italy or Germany.
1t will be a very salutary exercise for those
editors who are opposing the new deal vigor-
ously to consider what will happen if it fails,
and to acquaint themselves with the conditions
of the press in the leading Fascist and Com
munist states of the world.
A new type of snake has been found in