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UTAH PRESS ASSOCIATION Theron Liddle, managing editor of the Deseret News and Telegram, said to an audience of journalism undergraduates in 1955: "Many people believe that the newspapers are dying out and will soon not be in existence. But I can promise any of you entering the journalism field that it will be the liveliest corpse you have ever seen." Cowboy humorist Will Rogers, no doubt reminiscing about his hometown of Claremore, Oklahoma, once commented: "Take away my ham, take away my eggs, even my chili, but leave me my newspaper. "Even if it has such purely local news as 'Jim Jones came home last night unexpectedly and bloodshed ensued,' or 'Jes Bushyhead, our local M.D., is having one of the best years in his career, practically speaking- but they just won't pay him when they get well.' And 'Election ain't far off, and everybody is up for office that can sign an application blank.' "Now all that don't seem much news to you, but it is news, especially when you know the people and they are your own folks. So, no matter how punk you think your local newspaper is, let them take it away from you for a while and see how you feel. The old newspaper, I think, is about our biggest blessing." But what's said about the press isn't limited to observations of journalists or of humorists. Other figures of world renown have been quoted on the pro's and con's of newspapers and their widely divergent opinions are food for thought. "The organization of our press has truly been a success. Our law concerning the press is such that divergencies of opinion between members of the government are no longer an occasion for public exhibitions, which are not the newspapers' business. We've eliminated that conception that everybody has the right to say whatever comes into his head." The speaker? Adolf Hitler, head of Germany's Third Reich and architect of World War II. "Robust criticism of government by the press and the consequent skepticism of the press on the part of the government are the necessary ingredients for a truly free society." The opinion of Sen. Sam Ervin (N. Car.), a staunch proponent of press freedom and newsman's privilege. 412 |
