Year: 1879

THE NEWSPAPER OF THE FUTURE.


Mr.. Whitclaw Reid, editor of
the New York Tribune, delivered a


very able address before the twenty


third annual press convention of New


York, at Rochester, on the 18th inst.


His theme, referring to the press, was,
NObr Common Work-Its Needs,
Tendencies and Possibilities 2 In
speaking of the newspaper of the fu-
ture ae admitted that the quantity of
news could not be increased in the
next quarter or half century at the
same ratio of proportion as in
the past. The papers already
contain as much matter as the
average reader has time to glance
over, much less read and study care
fully, Mr.. Reids idea is that news
will be more carefully selected and
better written up. and possibly had in
his minds eye such a paper as the
Tribue as a model for the ambitious
editors of the future. There is no
doubt that the people have had sur
felt of large papers and that many
readers have looked more to the size of
a paper than to the quality of reading
matter, This surfeit has produced
reaction, however, in tendency to
better style on the part of editorial
writer's, and more appreciative and
discriminating taste on the part of all
regular and thoughtful readers. This
must continue as intelligence becomes
more generally diffused and the masses
are better educated. Mr.. Reid says
Now it is the news; by and by let
us hope it will be the brains.
Mr. Reid further calls for a
class Of Macaulay-like reporters,
Who shall write up everything
in the most finished and condensed
style. Just there is where his fancy
gets the better Of his solid Judgment.
Such style as he would introduce can
never be acquired by many writer's,
and only by gifted few who seclude
themselves from the busy haunts of
life and devote themselves to slow
and continuous hard study. The
people want facts more than style or
word painting. The masses, however
practical aud intelligent, are not up to
the Macaulay style and never will be.
Something like the easy, facile style
of Dickens suits them much better,
and even that is often too diffuse and
la0ored. We are Of the opinion that
the reporters of to-day cannot be-
greatly improved upon. Macaulays
are not born every year. and when they
are they are not likely to remain per-
manently in the line of reporting for
daily newspaper. Mr.. Reid, how
ever, makes one good point in par
ticular, which is worth noticing.
He says that the papers of New
York, faulty as they are to-day
are better than their readers,
and that the press constantly resists
great temptations to come down to
level with its surroundings. He says,
and we close with this quotation,
which is truthful and just: The
thing always forgotten by the closet
critic of the newspapers is that they
must be measurably what their audi
ences make them--what their con-
stituencies call for and sustain. The
newspapers cannot uniformly resist
the popular sentiment any more than
the stream can flow aboveits fountain.
10 say that newspapers are getting
worse is to say that people are get
ting worse. That doctrine our super
fine moralists have croaked ever since
we had an existence as a people, but
whenever the crisis came we have al
ways found that, beneath the surface
frOth, the currents of national life
flowed pure and strong as ever. The
evil tendencies of the press in our day
are to be. seen plainly enough they
have been seen in all days, since the
first newspaper was made. 1t even
works more evil now than it ever
wrought before, because its influence
is more widespread, but it also works
more good, and its habitual attitude
is ono of effort toward the best its
audience will tolerate.'f 8 3HiGM I'd