Evening star., 1942-08-29
Suit Against the A. P.

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lleves, and has SO convinced friend
ly administration, that this member
ship will be comparatively advan-
| tageous in the Suns (and the ad-
mlnlstration's) fight against the
| Chicago Tribune That is the motive
| behind the suit. The tall talk by Mr.
Marshall Field. the complainant, and
| the Government lawyers concerning
| freedom of the press is so much Win
dow dressing
1t is a matter Of opinion whether
! an A. P. membership would be of ma
terial ADVANTAGE to the Chicago Sun
in its crusade against the Tribune.
The more important question is the
effect of successful suit on the As
sociated Press.
The Government states that the
Associated Press has achieved rep
utation synonymous with the high
est standards of accurate non-par-
tisan and comprehensive news re-
porting and has built service with
out which any newspaper operates at
a competitive disadvantage In other
words, the Associated Press in the
Governments opinion, has attained
a degree of excellence which makes
the possession of an Associated Press
membership in effect essential in the
successful operation of a newspaper.
This contention bellies the successful
operation of such non-m member pa
pers as the Pittsburgh Press, the
Cleveland Press and the Cincinnati
Post The Washington Times Herald,
which claims the largest circulation
of any Washington newspaper de-
spite the lack of an A. P. membership,
is another case in point.
But how were the reputation and
the value of the Associated Press, so
highly praised by the Government.
achieved? For one thing, because of
its operation as a cooperative, non-
proflt-making news service under a
charter and bylaws which, since the
founding of the Associated Press in
1900, have never been questioned by
the Government, despite the exist
ence on the statute books of the same
laws under which the present suit is
brought. The single complaint re-
gardlng illegality from a non men,
Der in these forty-two years was ex-
amined by T. w. Gregory, Attorney
General under Woodrow Wilson, who
dismissed it as being without merit.
These bylaws have been presumed to
be legal by a board of directors and
membership whose jealous ad-
herence to the high principles OF
Journalism and the public interest
has produced the admirable results
cited by the Government. Dis
criminatory standards of the Associ-
ated Press have imposed strict
obligations on its members In han
ding the news, the fulflllment of
which has been another contribution
to its success.
Yet the objective of the Govern
ment suit is to destroy this Associated
Press, hailed as being without a peer
in its field, and in its stead to substi-
tute an untried something which
legal theorists at the Department of
Justice visualize as a desirable re-
form. Under this theory the Asso-
clated Press could be obtained by
anybody with the money to buy it's
services. Under it, the strict obliga-
ton upon members to furnish the
A. P with their own news, a funda-
mental concept in the organization
of the Associated Press, would be
distorted if not destroyed. Under it.,
the unspeakable members of the
''vermin" press, so recently dealt with
by the Department of Justice, could
proudly claim membership in the
A. P
There are curious anomalies in this
A. P. pictures, it suffers, according
to the complaint, and this disadvan-
tage is the greater because competing
picture services are already under
contract to other clients. Is the AS
sociated Press to be robbed of the
value which lies in EXCLUSIVELY, leav-
ing other competitors in the field to
sell exclusive services where they
choose? But perhaps the greatest
anomaly of all is that this suit, osten-
sibly designed to encourage free
competition, would destroy the in
centive of competition which has
| helped to give the Associated Press
supremacy in the field of competing
news services and perhaps destroy
the A. P. along with it in order to
improve the competitive position of
the Chicago Sun.
That is not merely curious. 1t
smells.