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Show Candidate Support: The Big Switch The frantic sashay across party boundaries boun-daries which has set previously staunch Republicans flirting with Johnson and disgruntled Democrats wearing "Almost all the way with LBJ" buttons has spread to the newspapers, along with an increased in-creased concern in ethical campaign coverage. cov-erage. Perhaps the most noticable switch was Life's sudden love affair with Johnson, which was announced in an editorial in its latest edition, marking the first time that a Time, Inc., magazine had jilted the Republican Re-publican party in a presidential race. The editorial in Life praised Johnson as a "well-qualified President of the United States" who "has shown an impressive capacity for growth in the Presidency so far." THE MAGAZINE said of Goldwater: "We do not think a landslide defeat would be unjust to either." Since 1936 Life has been a part of the publishing empire em-pire of Henry R. Luce, whose wife is a national co-chairman of the Citizens for Goldwater. At the Republican national convention in July, Mrs. Luce delivered one of the seconding speeches for Goldwater, charging charg-ing at a news conference that Goldwater had not gotten fair coverage from many easter publications including that of her husband. At that time he was backing Gov. William Scranton of Pennsylvania for the Republican choice. Meanwhile the New York Herald Tribune did its own about-face in editorial policy, claiming that Goldwater "simply does not have the combination of personal talents necessary for the presidency of the United States." The newspaper was founded in 1841 by Horace Greeley and has supported every Republican candidate since that time. The Herald Tribune said that Goldwater upon receiving the Republican Re-publican nomination at San Francisco, showed "unabashed arrogance." ALTHOUGH THE Los Angeles Times recently stated that it has "vigorously disagreed" with many of Goldwater's positions, the newspaper calls for a Republican Re-publican victory in November. In the South newspapers are swinging the opposite way. Alabama's Birmingham News, a Newhouse paper, has come out for Goldwater, while the Natchez Democrat, Demo-crat, formerly a democratic newspaper in Mississippi, broke tradition to go Republican. Repub-lican. e Late In September Editor and Publish a newspaper trade Journal, found in a poll that 250 of the nation's 777 dallies backed Goldwater, while 243 endorsed Johnson. However, the newspapers backing Johnson were found to have twice the circulation of the pro-Gold-water papers. The Atlantic Monthly, which has not taken a stand m the presidential races for 100 years has come out in opposition L dTter' rhile ScriPPs-Howard and Hearst chams have gone Democratic for the first time since 1936 and 1932 re spectively. Likewise the Harrisburg Pa tnot-News a politically independent newspaper, news-paper, endorsed Johnson the first iw " V"6 endf WorId Waren nat'Te paper has endorsed a Democrat Whether these shifts are indicative of Newsmen themselves seem t k i interested In these XtK "JmJ? more Interested in f'SSUS saw Hn a, fsx political polls, based on the pollsters' 1964 performance to date. At the same time, a declaration that most editors and news directors will continue con-tinue to publish or broadcast poll report during the fall campaign. A strong sentiment in favor of restrictions re-strictions on political part activities by political reporters. Divided opinions on whether equal space constitutes a measure of obectivity in newspaper dates. TO THE QUESTION "Do you feel thai the attitude of the candidate toward the press has any bearing on his treatment by the press?," 73 per cent said yes. Most of the answers were along the line that reporters were human beings and tend to react to hostility the same as other humans. hu-mans. Fifty-six per cent of the reporters claimed that they felt that political W reports influence voters, while 52 per cent expressed a cause for real concern in the regular challenges to the "impartiality of political reporters. Sixty-six per cent called for debates on television between presidential can dates this fall, and 72 per cent place restrictions re-strictions on political party activities D) their political reporters. Fifty-two f cent disagreed with the suggestion of C" gressman Bolton of Ohio that radio a"8 television networks should agree to w"' hold declaration of a winner in Novern ber until the polls have been closed ' over the nation. Editors while interested in the 1964 o come, are also vitally interested in tiw role in campaign coverage. A Demc... for Johnson, a Democrat for Gold"' a Republican for Goldwater, a Republic" for Johnson, use editorial space to expf a multitude of various views. One edit" is not so much concerned with the vie of another. The real concern in 19 centers around ethical questions and" introspection by many editors of I news-space practices. -Dally Tex" |