Evening star., 1942-10-29
Chicago Tribune Charges Suit to Dissolve A. P
Would Foster. Not Prevent, News Monopoly
Continued From First PAGE

Would Foster, /
Continued From First Page.)
ination as to, rates, service, opera
ton and the like.
Cites Totalitarian States.
Since Tudor and Stuart times
until this case no government OF
an English-speaking people has at
tempted to establish a privilege, pat
ent or monopoly of the dissemina-
tion of news The totalitarian states
of today establish monopolies for the
purpose of dominating the lives of
their peoples by domination of mo-
nopolies thus established. The anti
trust laws of the United States were
designed to prevent monopoly, not
to foster monopoly
The answer challenged what it
asserted was the Governments con-
tention that "1t is prerogative to
require news services to furnish news
to any newspaper which applies,
under the pretext that denial of
such access constitutes restraint In
trade in violation of the antitrust
laws" 1t was described by. the de-
fendants as "a subversion of the
purposes and objects of the anti
trust laws and contrary to the spirit
and genius of republican form of
government"
The exclusiveness of the mutual
return of local news by A. P. men,
bers to the A. P. Is not an unrea-
sonable restraint of trade or COM
merce nor does it tend toward mo-
nopoly, the answer contended. 1t
said this had been admitted by the
United States at all times since the
organization of the A. P. and by
the formal opinion of the Attorney
General in 1915.
Fears Loss of Competition.
The exclusiveness of news fea-
lures, editorial comment and the
like is the greatest single factor in
making competition between papers, u
the answer said. ITO forbid it is to
destroy competition"
The answer said the defendants
rely upon the continued acquiescence
of the Government in the conduct OF
the A. p from 1900 to filing of the
complaint, the written approval of
the Department of Justice to the
legality of the A. P. operations in
1915 and "the failure to taken action
until this Nation has become pre-
occupied with winning the war and
has relaxed its vigilance to preserve
guaranteed individual liberties"
1t described the Governments suit
as an effort to induce the judiciary
to contSrue the antitrust laws to
place the press on the common level
with commercial or business enter
prises for the purpose of control
and regulation.
Such an effort the answer de-
scribed as an assault on the validity
of the Bill of Rights and other his
toric charters and precedents which
have emancipated man from penal
servitude."
The answer denied the Govern
ment contention that no daily news
paper can exist in this country today
without access to the services of a
news agency and asserted that the
contention newspaper without A. P.
operates at competitive disad-
vantage to one carrying A. P. news
cannot be answered as a universal.
Memberships Denied.
The Government made this con-
tention with the denial last April
by members of the Associated Press
of the applications of Marshall
Field for morning membership for
the Chicago Sun and Eleanor Me-
dill Patterson for both morning and
afternoon memberships for the
Washington Times-Herald, of which
she is sole owner.
Mr. Field stated in his applica-
ton that it was absolutely necessary
that the Chicago Sun acquire an
A. P. membership to serve Chicago's
interests and compete with other
A. P. papers, The answer filed to-
day said that this statement con-
tradicts what Mr.. Field has said
elsewhere. 1t added:
"On December 4, 1s41, he said We
have contracted with news gather
ing services that have world wide
facilities and long and sound ex-
perience.' Since commencing pub
lication of the Chicago Sun he has
many times said that his facilities
are complete, that his news coverage
is the best and he has claimed on
occasions to have scooped competi-
tive newspapers"
Denying that the Chicago Suns
lack of access to A. p. news picture
service had proved a great competi-
tive disadvantage, the answer added
that the Chicago Sun could furnish
it's readers with adequate news
photo service If it would display
initiative and diligence in obtain
ing it.
Circulation Claims Cited.
The rejection of Eleanor Medill
Patterson's application. the answer
said, did not restrain the Washing
ton Times Herald in the conduct of
it's business. The Washington Times
Herald, with U. P. and I. N. S., has
built up the largest newspaper cir
culation in Washington and its
owner, the answer said, claims that
her newspaper Is dominant in the
field and that it has the most COM
plete and best coverage of the news.
The publishers of the Chicago
Tribune said the newspapers pre-
eminence" is due to the free play OF
the forces of competition and is
neither "unwholesome" nor monopo-
listic, as charged by the Government
They added: "The defendants are
advised to believe that it is not the
province of the Government to de-
termine wherether the newspaper
situation in Chicago or elsewhere
does not meet its views or the views
of the current administration In
charge of the Government in re-
spect to the wholesomeness, but that
the province of the Government is
solely in respect to violation, if any,
of law"