Evening star., 1953-08-16
Mccarthy Challenges
Editors 10 Air His
Charges on Wiggins
BY the Assoeioted Press

Senator Mccarthy, Republi-
can. of Wisconsin called on a
group of newspaper editors yes
terday to investigate his charge
that James Russell Virgins,
managing editor of the Wash
ington Post and a critic of Sen
ator Mccarthy, has "proStituted
and endangered" freedom Of the
press.
Mr.. Virgins Immediately is
sued a statement saying moth
ing would please him more than
to have a study made Of the
Posts full, accurate and fair
news coverage of and editorial
comment on the public career
Of Senator Mccarthy" He &C
cused Senator Mccarthy Of
"evading the issues"
Mr.. Virgins was chairman Of
a special committee of the Amer
lean Society of Newspaper Edi-
tors (ASNE) which studied the
question whether Senator Nc
Carthy's closed-door questioning
of James A. WechSler. editor Of
the New York Post. threatened
freedom of the press.
The 11-member ASNE COM
mittee issued a report earlier in
the week saying in effect that,
after a two months study, they
had failed to agree on any clear
cut answer.
Writes to Z Editors.
However, four Of the editors,
including Mr.. Virgins, submitted
q separate statement calling the
interrogation of Mr.. Wechsler a
definite threat to freedom of the
press.
The letter Senator Mccarthy
made public yesterday was ad-
dressed to the seven members of
the ASNE committee who did
not sign the minority statement
Paul Block, jr.. co-publisher of
the Toledo (Ohio Blade and
the Pittsburgh PoSt-Gazette;
Raymond L. Crowley, managing
editor of the st. Louis PoSt-DiS-
patch: William H. Fitzpatrick,
associate editor of the Wall
Street Journal: George w. Healy,
jr., editor of the New Orleans
Times-Picayune; L. D. Hotch-
kiss, editor of the Los Angeles
Times; Joseph w. Lee, editorial
director of the Topeka (Kans.)
State Journal and James S.
Pope, executive editor of the
Louisville Courier-Journal and
Times.
Editors who Joined with Mr..
Virgins in criticizing Senator
Mccarthy were Herbert Brucker
editor of the Hartford Comm
Courant: William M. Tugman,
editor Of the Eugene (OregO
Register-Guard and Eugene S.
Pulliam, jr., managing editor of
the Indianapolis News.
Inclosed with Senator McCar-
thy'S letter to the seven editors
was an August Is editorial from
the Washington Post referring
to the ASNE report and to the
questioning of Mr.. Wechsler last
April "A and May 5 by the Sen
ate Investigations Subcommit-
tee headed by Senator McCar-
thy.
Deliberate Falsity."
The editorial said Mr.. Wech-
sler was summoned before the
subcommittee under the pre-
text" of questioning about books
of his in the State Departments
overseas libraries but that he
twas subjected to intensive in
terrogation about editorials in
his newspaper critical of Sena-
tor Mccarthy"
Senator McCarthy's letter tc
the seven editors said that, since
they had examined the testi-
mony, they would readily rec
ognize the complete and delib-
crate falsity" of this charge.
In this connection, it is Of
interest to recall one para
graph from the report made
by the majority of the ASNE
committee (the seven men to
whom Senator Mccarthy ad-
dressed his letter yesterday.
Under an introduction to facts
that had emerged from the
committee investigation was
the following paragraph:
Further questioning by Sem
ator Mccarthy probed into the
editorial policies of the New
York Post under Mr.. Wech-
sler's editorShip and into the
political affiliations of men,
bers of his staff, with particu-
lar emphasis on editorials and
columns critical Of Senator
Mccarthy and other congress
sional investigators. as we'll as