Evening star., 1960-12-26
Kennedy's Victory Over Nixon Voted
BY Editors as Top 1860 News Story
BY TOM HENSHAW

1ulcQ VICOOEy ONCI VICC 0ICSI-
dent Nixon in one of the clos
est Of all United States presi-
Dental elections has been
chosen the top story of 1860 by
news editors of Associated
Press member newspapers and
radio stations.
So thin was the Kennedy
margin that not until noon the
day after the election, when
Minnesota's II electoral votes
fell into the Democratic camp,
did the 43-year.old Massachu-
sets Senator feel sure enough
Of his electoral ground to claim
victory.
The Kennedy victory ended
eight years Of Republican rule
under President Eisenhower; 1t
also placed In the White House
its youngest elected occupant
and the first Roman Catholic
ever chosen to the Nations
highest political office.
U-2 Incident Second
Foreign affairs dominated
the other spots in the editors
top 10 story selections.
Close behind the exciting
Kennedy-Nixon tussle, in the
editors estimation, came the
U-2 incident, the shooting down
Of an American reconnaissance
plane high over Sverdlovsk In
the very heartland of the vast
Soviet Union.
The incident gave the first
intimation to the American
people and possibly to the
Russian people. too-that high
altitude aircraft were able to
ny with virtual impunity over
even the most closely guarded
territory in the world.
The pilot Of the downed U-2,
Francis G.. Powers, parachuted
to safety and was sentenced as
q spy to 10 years in a Russian
prison after a public trial in
Moscow.
Summit Collapse Third
The editors No. 3 story,
closely tied to the U-2 incident,
was the collapse Of the Paris
Summit Conference in q welter
Of table-thumping, accusations
and name-calling on the part
Of Soviet Premier Khrushchev.
The conference principles
President Eisenhower, Prime
Minister Macmillan of Britain,
Gen. de Gaulle Of France and
Premier KhruShchev-ha a d
gathered for the opening ses-
sion when the Soviet leader de-
manded an apology for U-2 as
q condition for continuing. The
demand was rejected and the
conference collapsed.
Independence for the former
Belgian Congo. its collapse into
chaos and subsequent United
Nations intervention was the
choice for No. 4 story. Despite
the U. NJ. the Congo situation
soon degenerated into another
East-West battlefield in the
cold war.
At the same time, a number
Of former French and British
colonies in Africa moved peace
fully into independence. Their
mass admission into the U. N.
served notice that the voice Of
the once Dark Continent is
growing in world councils.
AS the Nation prepared for
the Christmas holiday, two
airliners coming in for a land.
ing collided in a snow storm
over New York. It was the
worst aviation disaster in
United States history, claiming
1875 lives, and the editors Sc
lected this as their No. 5 story.
One plane, a big United Air
lines jet. fell in a densely popu-
lated section of Brooklyn, de-
stroying a church and setting
homes on fire. Eight persons
perished on the ground. The
other plane. a TWA Constella-
ton, crashed on Staten Island.
Castro in 9Th Spot
Other choices in the editors
top ten:
6. Fidel CaStro's movement
into the Communist orbit and
Americas worsening relations
with that island nation amid a
barrage Of propaganda and
connscations Of United States
property IN Cuba.
Z. The visit Of Premier
Khrushchev, the satellite lead
ers and others to the United
Nations, which turned New
York into a hotbed Of frantic
maneuvering. accusations and
demonstrations as police
sought to protect some Of the
worlds most hated men.
8. Space and nuclear af-
fairs, including: United States
retrieves first space capsule;
the nuclear submarine Triton
voyages arond the world un-
derwater; the Polaris armed
nuclear sub George Washing
ton puts to sea: and France
becomes the fourth member
Of the nuclear club.
.. The last minute cancel
lation Of President Eisenhow-
er's visit to Japan in the wake
Of leftists riots over the new
American Japanese defense
pact. Part Of the same general
story was the resignation under
FIRE of Japan's Premier Kishi
who engineered the pact
through parliament.
10. Sit-in demonstrations in
the southern states and the
New Orleans school integration
incidents. The sit-ins brought
the Negro fight for equality fol
i.aA Z