Montana labor news., 1945-05-24

However, the freedom OF the press is
now being attacked by Rep. John Ran
kin (D.-Miss.) in his efforts to have the
House cite a reporter for the New York
newspaper PM for contempt
The reporter Albert Deutsch, wrote
splendid series Of stories exposing con-
ditions in the U. S. Veterans admins
tration and veterans hospitals. He got
his material from interviews, and cor
respondence. with many doctors in and
out of the Veterans administration. This
list of doctors include some of the high
est professional standing" Deutsch said.
Rankin, VINO is chairman of the Veter-
ans committee of the House. was irked
at the revelations, and eager for the
sealps of the talkative government doc
tors, he demanded that Deutsch give the
names of his informants. This was
properly refused by Deutsch. No news
paperman worthy of the name would do
so under any circumstances.
SO Rankin got his committee to hold
Deutsch for contempt and is pressing
for House action to make the case stick.
PMS Managing Editor John P. Lewis
termed the Rankin action "an applica-
ton Of the Mississippi lynch law to the
American press. What it means is that
no public employe may dare talk to a
reporter-much less give him informa-
tion-without running the danger Of re-
prisals and investigation by the Rankin
gestapo. If this lynehing is upheld, it
will erect barrier to prevent free
press from performing its function Of
exposing and correcting corruption or
mismanagement Of government"
President Milton Murray of the Amer
ican Newspaper Guild (CIo), PM
scribe termed the Deutsch-Rankin case
a Challenge to the rights of newspaper
men"
American newspapers and newspaper
men will fight this newest Rankin out
burst to the last ditch. They will guard
their interests here with mutual con-
cern, but there is another side to news
papermen here that is not so good.
With hundreds of Negro newspapers
over the nation, and with Negro news
paper reporters almost universally ac-
cepted, they are barred from the press
galleries in the u S. capitol.
one Of them, Harry McAlpin Of the
Atlanta Daily World, is accredited to the
White House, but so far McAlpin has
had no luck in crashing the Senate or
House press sections.
Another Negro newsman, Ernie john
son of the Associated Negro Press, is de-
termined to take up the fight through
the courts.
johnson attends the War department,
owl, WLB and other press conferences
in the city, but he has been refused ad-
mittance to the capitol galleries NC
Alpin's case never has been acted upon.
It is just pending" but there is a small
difference in that McAlpin represents a
daily paper, while johnson writes for
Just weeklies and under the rules set by
the speaker of the House and the Senate
rules committee, is barred by that fact
What johnson intends to do now, how
ever, is to again file his bid and, when
turned down by the standing committee
Of correspondents elected by newspaper
men covering Congress) he proposes to
file suit against them for violation Of
| the Sherman anti-trust act.
johnson will contend that the standing
committee is conspiring to keep news
from large group Of newspapers in re
/ straint of trade.
The committee is headed by Sam Bell
of the New York Herald Tribune and
include John Cutter Of the United
Press, william Knighton of the Balti-
more sun, Elizabeth May Craig OF the
Portland Press and Bukley Griffin of
| the Boston Traveller
Mrs Craig was elected last winter on
platform that included support for
McAlpin's case She can't get the com
mittee to act on McAlpin despite his
obvious qualification
jim Grow still rules the congressional
/ press galleries.