The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1953-09-25
Open Letter to the ACM
Company

am writing about THE DAILY MIS-.
SOULIAN, which l have read for many
year, and perhaps about other large
dailies in Montana. l am assuming
that you are the essential owners anC
policy makers for the paper. 1 write
openly because 1 wish to lend my views
to public criticism. 1 offer my letter
to THE PEOPLES VOICE because THE
DAILY MISSOULIAN does not invite
letters from its readers on any sub
ject.
1 waive the question whether great
industrial company should use its
wealth to create monopoly newspaper
situation in our cities. I believe there
are some possible advantages for the
public even in newspaper monopolies,
so I assume you would answer that
you have the interests of the people
at heart and welcome suggestions for
making the papers better serve their
proper end.
on the whole I think the paper serves
us rather impartially with news of ma
tional affairs. State news is marked
by many unhappy omissions and a
complete lack of editorial interpreted
ton The paper handles what local
news it handles with decency and
reasonableness and does not play up
sensa tional news. There is a dearth
of good reviewing of cultural events
in the community but that may be a
responsibility that many of us should
share. I am sure that many readers
appreciate the increasingly good Sun
day feature stories on the institutions
and the activities of the community.
The most serious weakness of our
paper is that it does not concern itself
vigorously or imaginatively with the is
sues of the community. No community
cause that 1 can remember in many
years has been initiated or stoutly
supported in the editorial columns of
the paper Many good community caus-
es have cried out for support but have
not found it until they were achieved
by excessively hard work on the part
of unrecognized workers. We have had
much-needed courageous conduct by
young political officials in the COM
munity, but they have had no editorial
support. Surely it is not enough for an
editor to be against only those things
everybody is already against and for
only those things everybody is al
ready for.
Henry Luce. the notable publisher
owner, recently spoke of the "enor- |
nous responsibilities for the city or
the section over which he presides"
of the publisher editor of the |
newspaper. He presides over
the presentation of the news, upon
which democratic government depends;
he presides over the school system, as
to which he can be more or less COM
1lacent; he presides over the importa-.
ton of foreign material, like the col
over which the local COM
nunity has no control whatever. "sHe
)resides over the city government
choosing whether or not to send his
'epOrters after it and expose and root
)ut crime and corruption Answer in
many cases: who rocks the boat?"
The editor Of our paper never rocks
he boat on these vital questions. And /;
t is very ironic to have him sit and
ender editorial judgment on the
mighty figures of the world and on I
he great issues which are often much t
more complicated than his readers are {
flowed to know, and then have moth I
ng to say on the men and issues Of I
ur own city and state except to
ounsel us to preserve the free enter /
rise and courage of our pioneer faith {
RS. Erg S
A cardinal need of our time, I think [
veryone agrees, is the prevention of '
lore Capitalization of power in the t
reat centers: our ways and decisions r
nd responsibilities should be locally S
etermined as often as they can be, o
4 all the areas of our life 1 see no l.
ray of staying this drift of power to b
Washington if we do not achieve more il
ynamic process of expressing and il
compromising our conflicting views t
nd interests within our severaT local t
communities and states. e
The need is for opinion in the com
lunity to be treated as news in the
aper. This could be effected both by n
ending enterprising reports to all the II
uarters where opinion prevails and by
pening again the Communications col
INNS of the paper in which readers
an express their varied opinions Some
these opinions will doubtless be wild h
nd vulgar and some will be dull and o
but that can hardly be il
ojected to by newspaper that gives f,
S Westbrook Pegler and David Law a
ence day after day. The cause of good l.,
am sure, and the cause of o
'ue conservatism, / would suppose e.
ere much better served by one good
like Walter Lippmann. W
I am sure you know that the Let 81
RS o-the-Editor column is one of the g
dest and most popular elements of the Il
zee press tradition in America and o.
by it should be denied to Montana
eople L do not understand. I am just II
5 sure that Montana people will re- II
)ect any newspaper that is conserva- ~
We in it's philosophy, if it will proud =
declare both it's ownership and its u
linions and leave the lists open to y
,unter opinions that might test it's ~
'nvictions. In these matters, as Will =
am Blake put it, Opposition is True III
p1
1t is from teaching Montana vouth CT