Evening star., 1937-06-27
DEBATE AND ROLL CALL
ON COURT BILL URGED
Inadvisable to Let Measure Merely Die
in Senate, Writer Says-Roosevelt
and Press Discussed.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.
~ RESIDENT ROOSEVELT does
. not like newspapers as a class
He distinguishes between news

- not like newspapers as class.
He distinguishes between news
Il papers and newspaper men.
Practically all newspaper men he likes.
And II he does not like any, he tries
to appear to. He seems to make 1t a
rule. a part OF his technique, to be on
good terms with every newspaper man
who attends his press conferences, to
be genial and humorous toward them
all, to call them by their first names.
and answer their questions with a
smile, or else fattering deferential
seriousness. Even when the question
y one he'd prefer not to answer, when
ne wishes the darn question hadn't
been asked. still he answers with a
smile. or evades with smile When
there isn't any way out except to say
directly that he doesn't want to an
sWer-in such cases he Is particularly
careful to be agreeable. Always, for
the most part spontaneously, but
synthetlcally when necessary. Mr..
Roosevelt is nice to newspaper men.
1t IS easy enough. for he genuinely
likes nearly all Of them, and nearly
all OF them like him as a person. Most
OF them are young, and between
young mems minds and Mr.. Roose-
velt's mind there is natural fraternity.
Even the more mature ones. who have
their own opinions about Mr.. Roose-
Velt's policies and actions - they
nevertheless find him entertaining
and llkeable rs man. Practically
all the younger newspaper men, who
don't bother their heads a great deal
about distractions of social theory,
and so neither admire nor deplore
Mr.. Roosevelt's policies, admire him
Tor different reason. A young DO
lltlcal reporter looks on politicians
much as young sports reporter
looks on base ball players or prize
lighters. II man is good at the game
ne plays. Babe Ruth in base ball.
the reporters tend to like him and
praise him. CAT least they do until he
begins to slip) And so. many of the
younger political reporters. seeing
Mr.. Roosevelt good, as they think, at
this game of politics. tend to like
him. Altogether, Mr. Roosevelt's press
conferences are very agreeable occa-
s1ons for all concerned Most Of the
newspaper men like Mr. Roosevelt, and
he likes most Of them.
Attitude Seen Strained.
Sometimes, lately. Mr.. Roosevelt's
rule of being genial with every one
OF the newspaper men at his press
conferences, shows signs of wearing
little thin. Not far beneath Mr.
Roosevelt's smile is something differ
ent. Occasionallv-very rarely and
only falntly-one gathers the impress
sion that to hold back sharp answer
to newspaper mans question costs
the President some strain, some
exercise OF self-restraint. But he
does manage 1t.
Those newspaper conferences are
extremely important to Mr.. Roosevelt.
He uses them to start currents Of public
emotion. without himself taking anv
responsibility. I imagine he regards
his newspaper conferences as far more
important than his cabinet meetings
He might cut out his cabinet meetings
altogether, but never would he cut out
his newspaper conferences. In all his
more than four years in the presidency,
I don't think he has Cancelled more
than f1ve newspaper conferences. He
KNOWS exactly how to make use OF the
newspaper conferences, knows how
useful they are to him. and he won't
impair their usefulness by making one
newspaper man feel cold or critical
toward him To Mr. Roosevelt. a news
paper man. especially one who goes to
his newspaper conferences, Is an ave-
hue to the public mind. He is the
equivalent Of microphone wire. and
Mr.. Roosevelt won't cut any micro
phone wires.
Newspapers are different matter.
AS group. Mr.. Roosevelt thinks
they have serious failings And 50
they have. Aside from the failings
that every newspaper man recog-
nizes, Mr.. Roosevelt is irritated by
newspapers just because, without the
faintest feeling against Mr.. Roose-
welt, they sometimes picture things
differently from the way Mr.. Roose-
welt would like to see them pictured.
or differently from the way Mr.. Roose-
welt sees them himself. Mr.. Roosevelt
Is q very boyish person. He sees
something that he does IN q certain
way, and 1t gives him a sense of out
rage to find newspapers picturing it
IN different way.
Faults of Newspapers.
That newspapers have faults. prac-
tlcally everybody will agree. News
paper Is = broad and loosely used
term. 1t Is applied to institutions
almost as far apart from each other
IN essential nature as the North and
South Poles. Most of the elarine
faults are confined to less than 10
per cent of all newspapers.
That the best OF newspapers, and
the best OF newspaper writers, have
faults and lapses, everybody knows.
One minor lapse of MANY news
paper writer's Is the making of state
ments which could not possibly he
proved, which show their absurdity m
the face OF them Sometimes, when
going strong and writing rapidly, use
the phrase everybody knows" some
thing or other. should have a good
deal Of trouble proving that. It is
family possible there might be one