Evening star., 1946-10-01
*+THE EVENING STAR, Washington, D. G.
TUESDAY ocIoBER ie1.
Free Press Is Keynote
JAS Newspaper Week
Opens Through U. 5.

National Newspaper Week begin
today with the wartime and postwa.
public service Of American news
papers to be the keynote of th'
seventh annual observance, which
continues through next Sunday.
Slogan of the weeks activities
sponsored by Newspaper Association
Managers. Inc, is:
"A Free Press Voice of Freedom
Guardian of Liberty"
How the American press told ths
story of the war to the American
people, how it diligently portrayed
the march of national events ant
how it joined in its local and com.
munity projects will be the subjecI
lof special tribute throughout, ths
week.
Gene Alleman, Secretary-managel
of the Michigan Press Association
who is chairman of the Newspaper
Week Committee, described thu
theme of the weeks activities, add.
ing tribute to American editors
He said:
1--WE believe that the editor wht
champions the welfare OF the com.
munity through newspaper public
service is living up to the finest
traditions Of the American press
To serve as voice of freedom ano
a guardian of liberty, the press mus
remain unshackled and free o1
hampering restraints"
Programs will get underway today
in almost every hamlet, town anc
city where newspaper is published
so that readers NAV know the part
the press plays and has played in
their lives. The public will be given
examples of how an impartial press
operates and how it benefits from
such service.
Storm clouds threatening the free
dom of the press were pointed out
however, by Kent Cooper, executive
director of the Associated Press, who
said:
National Newspaper Week this
year finds the movement for free
dom of the press facing obstructions
and generally being buffeted around
I'm the last IL months, censor
ship has been relaxed in some coun-
tries, but there probably is more
censorship today than in any other
recent peacetimaera. One thing has
developed that is worth while: pub
lie consciousness in many parts of
the world that freedom of the press
is an essential.
"A great deal of lip service to the
idea has been given by officials
who could really do something about
it, and it could have been put higher
on the agenda of the United Nations
than No. 20, under a subhead. 1t
should have been placed first. An
other thing of great concern is that
the stress seems to be on freedom
of information, without realization
that information that can't be
printed avails nothing.
CAS- I said the first of the year in
a message to the United Nations:
"It is my fervent hope that you
and your associates will develop a
program going far beyond mere
access of reporters to news. and
communications facilities. The whole
structure of human rights in a
world of free men, with govern
ments of their own choosing, rests
upon one basic right-the right to
know.
Vague phrases such as freedom
of information are inadequate. The
fundamental medium of commune
cations is the printed word. The
right to know must be implemented
by the right to print, by full press
freedom. This objective must not
be the selfish one to get news for
ourselves. World understanding can
be achieved only if news flows freely
to all countries and may be freely
published in them"