Montana labor news., 1939-07-20

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on the chapter
which dis Richard Lake
closes the ownership of the Herald
Tribune by the Whitelaw Reid fam
lily, and that papers attitude toward
other properties and investment;
held by the same family. Most in
%teresting items are the Herald Tri-
bune's suppression Of news concern
ing the 1885 strike of the National
Biscuit Company (owned largely by
the Whitelaw Reid family, and the
Herald Tribune's Qualification Of
Cuban fascism in 1887.
I select this incident which Seldei
describes as the biggest ethical
scandal in metropolitan journalism
not because l wish to single out the
Herald Tribune as an extreme ex-
ample, but because the case is q
beautifully illustrative one. On
November q, 1887, the Herald Tri-
bune carried a special section of 40
pages entitled Cuba Today-Land
Of Peace and Progress" and pur-
ported to be written and presented
by friends Of Cuba. The section
consisted Of 40 pages of fulsome
bombast in praise of the Batista
dictatorship-this in spite of the fact
that the Batista regime had been
pretty generally admitted to be less
than worthy Of praise. But this was
not all.
'The Herald Tribune, having pub
lished the supplement as editorial
matter, later insisted that it be
credited by the Publishers Associa-
ton Of New York with 10000 lines
Of paid advertising in the same in
stance"
The Whitelaw Reid family owned
extensive properties in Cubal
The Publishers Association re-
fused to measure the section as adj
vertising, and the Herald Tribune
was cited for violation of the law
which provides the terrible penalty
of $500 fine-but this paper, the
voice Of the National Association of
Manufacturers and the United States
Chamber of Commerce was not
dropped from the Association.
Seldes comments: 81 sometimes
think it better to have a corrupt
press like the French, where book
reviews, art criticism, blurbs about
merchandise and statesmen are paid
for in cash and where everyone
knows that every item has its price,
than the American press where it
is impossible to bride a book re-
viewer, a theater or movie or opera
or art critic, where products and
people as a rule cannot buy favor
able reading notices at advertising
rates, and where nevertheless, with
out bribery and corruption an
almost similar treatment of people,
things, and events occurs"
But this is in a moment of deep
gloom. George Seldes is the hearth
est friend the American press has,
and the most fervent believer that
it will some day fulfill the glorious
promise that it rightfully has in the
United States. For that reason he
is its severest and most realistic
critic. Readers of "You Can't Print
That" Freedom of the Press" and
the more recent "You Can't Do
That" will be familiar with his
method. Mr.. Seldes gets around.
Little escapes him. He turns in a
mastery report on the American
Newspaper Publishers Association,
showing how those powerful men
organize to fight progressivism and
the labor movement and all liberal
activities; and hide their real hatred
for child labor legislation, codes for
publishers, and the Newspaper
Guild behind the false cry freedom
Of the press" It is difficult to sug-
gest the scope of Seldes's survey in
a brief review. He examines the
record of every important publisher
in America, providing in each in
stance a wealth Of factual material
to back up his criticisms. He in
vestigates the Washington cores
pondents, the plutogogues, or mouth
pieces of wealth, the popular col
umnists, and even adds a postscript
to the record of the much-investi-
gated Hearst. When he is most
optimistic over the possibilities of
the American press to develop for
the better, he checks himself with
the sober thought that after all it
has taken over 40 years for the
American people to repudiate Mr..
Hearst.
We in Montana who are so ia
miliar with the controlled press that
it is hard to imagine what any other
would he like will not find II hard