Evening star., 1935-04-20
R|CHbERG WILL GO
4OFF RECORD FOR
TALK TO EDITORS
Newspaper Society Will
Hear "What's Going on
Here, and Why"
B0RAH AND SiM0NDS
WILL SPEAK TONIGHT
Session Listens to Cutting Crit.
cism of Some Publications
From Own Members.

Following the lead Of President
Roosevelt, Donald r. Richberg today
will 60 "ofY the record" to tell the
American Society of Newspaper Edi-
tors Just what is going on in Washing
ton. and why. Richberg. holder OF
several ranking appointive ofices in
the administration and at present the
Eo. man at the N. r. A., Is to be
q luncheon guest Of the society at
the National Press Club.
Oficers for the coming year will be
elected at the luncheon session, and
tonight . dinner in their honor will
be given 1t the willard Hotel. Prin-
cipal speakers at this affair will be
Senator Borah. Republican Of Idaho.
and Frank H. Simonds, writer on for
eign affairs.
At their sessions yesterday. the
editors heard some of "the worst that
can truthfully be said about today's
newspapers" most Of 1t being said on
this occasion by members of their
own group. One Of the most direct
criticisms was made by Sir Willmott
Lewis, Washington correspondent for
the London Times, who declared the
"besetting sin" of modern journalism
is the millionaire who comes into the
field of Journalism merely to seek
power and privilege on his own in
terest"
Same Problem In Britain.
These people never were news
papermen and never will be news
papermen," he added. The same prob
lem exists in connection with the
British newspaper industry. he ad-
mitted.
This discussion Of the industrys
weaknesses followed talks on European
correspondence by Raymond Gram
Swing, Paul Scott Mowrer and Doro-
thy Thompson.
Taking his cue from comment by
Miss Thompson, wife of Sinclair Lewis.
that news in the dictator countries Of
Germany. Italy and Russia Is sup
pressed and colored by terrorism and
propaganda, metropolitan editor said
Louisiana now comes under that cate
CORY.
He told of reporter being severely
beaten by political henchmen on a
New Orleans train platform and left
for dead. A woman who witnessed
the assault offered to sign an afndavit
concerning the affair. But her prof.
fered help was vain, the editor de-
clared. for the woman and q repre-
sentative of the reporters paper could
,,~k iv.d,,,o a NIau, n~l>o rs :. ~ q -, v&,,S>
lie to put his seal on the afidavit.
The "unbridled license" granted
newspaper music, literary and drama
critics was hit by Arthur Krock, head
of the Washington bureau of the New
York Times, who called these three
groups "the privileged classes Of the
editorial page"
He termed the journalistic liberty
allowed them an outrage" as he
pointed out they were allowed to say
anything they please without editorial
restriction and stated:
"A book reviewer can destroy q book
with one wisecrack. A dramatic critic
with one fiippant epigram can bury a
play on which huge sums Of money
have been spent. They are allowed
greater freedom than was ever given
anybody in the newspaper field. The
sky's the limit"
Guild Growth Explained.
Growth of the Newspaper Guild,
which he called vertical union"
was blamed on publishers themselves
by Marlen Pew of Editor and Pub
Usher. After declaring this group
brought the only opposition pub
fishers had ever experienced in their
own ranks, he asked who caused its
growth and answered:
Newspaper publishers themselves
for not paying decent salaries and
wages to their editorial employees"
Standards for foreign correspond
ence were laid down by Swing in an
earlier open session. Swing, now as
sociate editor of the Nation, for 20
years represented the Chicago Daily
News and the New York Sun in
Europe.
He cited the vast increase in in
terest here in foreign happenings
from 1914, when he first arrived in
Berlin, to the present day. when
America and Europe have basically,
he said, exactly the same interests.
Today, he told the. editors, the
best newspaper men available should
be sent abroad. with absolute freedom
to travel and liberty to express opin-
ions on what Is happening as well
as to tell what Is happening.
THE real news in Europe is judg-
ment of action and what action to
expect" he closed.