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CHAPTER SIXTEEN Discord Splits The Association Only once in its century-plus of operation has the association encountered a serious division of thinking. When it did, the rift took some time to heal. That it mended at all, in fact, is probably because a 30-year old man named John E. Jones came to Utah as manager of Western Newspaper Union. "Johnny" Jones had what those close to him described as "a gift for reconciling differences." And he focused this rather remarkable ability on the controversy that had driven a wedge through the association five years earlier. As he travelled the state, he talked at length with publishers who held opposing views. He brought them together in two's and threes -- over dinner where possible - and persuaded them to forget bygones and restore USPA to its prior status. In the end, a harmonious relationship emerged and Utah State Press Association and the splinter group, Utah Newspaper Association, again became one. The man's philosophy perhaps reflects why he was a successful peace-maker. "I like people," he said in an interview long after the Utah crisis. "I always feel that if I can't get along with people it's my fault. You can't snap-judge; if you like people they'll like you. And you JOHN E. JONES - he helped to heal association wounds. 289 |
