Evening star., 1951-09-04
Editors Society Head
Urges Sending Tass
AGENTS Back 10 Russia
BY the Assoeiuted Press

BY the Associated Press
WILMINGTON. Del, Sept. A.
The president of the American So
ciety of Newspaper Editors, Alex
ander F. Jones, says representa-
tives of RuSSia'S TaSs News Agency
should be sent back to the Soviet
Union.
Mr.. Jones, executive editor of
the Syracuse IN. " Herald Jour-
nal. proposed this action yesterday
in retaliation for the jailing of AS
Sociated Press Correspondent Will
liam N. Oatis by Communist
CzechoSlovakia on espionage
charges.
Writing in the September issue
of the ASNE Bulletin. Mr.. Jones
said first step against the Red
newSmen could be a congressional
ban barring TaSs representatives
from the press galleries of Con-:
greSS.
New Gallery Rules Urged.
There will be no real progress
toward freeing Mr.. Oats, who is
serving a 10-year jail term in
Prague, until there is a realistic
approach to the subject of Amer
ican-Russian press relations" Mr.
Jones said.
Asking What can we do?" Mr..
Jones urged revision of congress
Sional gallery rules whereby no
Government agency, United States
or foreign, could be a member Of
the galleries or enjoy their
privileges.
Mr. Jones said this would af-I
feet only Tass."
In the first place, Tass is not
a news service" said Mr.. Jones.
1t is a Russian government sup
ported and controlled propaganda
bureau. It's Russian employees
Mikhail Fedorov, in Washington.
for example-are Soviet govern
ment employees who come into this
country On diplomatic passport.
Tass serves no free customes.
They represent a government
whose political philosophy teaches
and advocates the overthrow OF
the United States Government by
force and violence.
"Yet these representatives are
accorded every privilege of the
free press in Washington on the
basis that they represent the free
press.
THE Standing Committee OF Cor
respondents of the Congressional
Galleries, and the majority OF the
members, refused admission o1
Voice of America representatives
to the galleries because they rep
resent the United States Govern
ment and not daily newspapers.
The Associated and the United
Press refuse to service Voice OF
America because it is controlled
by the State Department.
Attend ALI Conferences.
And yet Tass-a Russian gov
ernment agency-iS admitted to-
the galleries and accorded every
press privilege in Washington, in
cluding off the record conferences.
"Federov makes little pretense
of being a neWSpaperman. He is
diplomatic representative OF the
Russian government, here on dip
lomatic passport. and his uncen-
Sored copy goes to the Kremlin by
cable, his more confidential dis
patches by embassy pouch.
while Fedorov. and other
members of his bureau walk into
the White House arrogantly, the {
surviving quartet of American
newspapermen in Moscow are the
next thing to journalistic prisoners
controlled, suspect"
Mr.. Jones then proposed send I
ing TaSs representatives back to
Russia and said the United States
should keep on doing it until the
Kremlin realizes its cozy, one-way
press deal is over !;
Called Propaganda Bureau.
Mr.. Jones also suggested that
the United States Government
notify Moscow that American .
newspapermen, while not Govern
ment representatives, are Ameri-
can citizens :. and any indign1ty
to them, in pursuit of their duties,
will be considered an unfriendly
act" !
Accusing some American news
papers of really playing footsie
with Communist control of this
international press situation" Mr..
Jones urged them to "get off their
dead posteriors and start to fight. "
Tass, Mr.. Jones said, is mot a
Desire to keep Door Open"
II am we'll aware" he con-
tinued, that the attitude of the
American Government in this sit .,
uation is due to long suffering !
desire to keep the door open, even
= tiny crack, in Moscow.
"I am also aware that the
State Department is influenced by
the pressure of the Associated
Press and United Press Associa-
tions, who are afraid they will
lose their Moscow bureaus if any :
move is made on Tass. :"
In New York an Associated
Press spokesman said the AP has +
never brought any pressure on
the State Department concerning
Tass.
A Tass representative in New :,
York had no comment. !
Comment from the United E