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Show I Thought I saw J. Edgar Hoover ... - its nourishment and success. It feeds on fear and to the violent and vindictive aspects of human natu'011''' watch their fellows, and make their business our " asl Ko-us Ko-us to think the worst of strangers rather than the b" business t separates. est- It aliena(e; Moreover, it is a slap in the face to those amon eager and responsible view to our citizenship Us who do lai, bribery. It is the buying of affections. Why do c enticemet sibility have to be bought with a $5,000 reward 8nd 16 ' builders and improvers of civilization and societv Tf Wlly the effort? It's as if the satisfaction of the imJ j Nab enough. P Ved Prcuf', We think the satisfaction of seeing a better world ' We are pleased to construct good things for thei'r'o 'ndeed'e--want no money for it. We want no part of the c" Salle'Jl,f-sideshow, Salle'Jl,f-sideshow, and we would expect no one with h,,m, ' fe to deal with it, either. nun,tanan aspii,. Remember, The Salt Lake Tribune We know who what you did! vou areandwe. "Be sure to set you watches back 10 years. Well, we may be in for a change. Any saying "Be sure to set your watches back 110 years. 1 hat may be going thanks to the Salt Lake Tribune. The vehicle of this regression is the Tribune's "Secret Witness" plan Th identity of the caller will never be known. He w.ll be asked to send a coded reply to The Tribune, containing only prearra nged scrambled numbers and detailing the information he has about the crime." "The information will be submitted to police who will then carry out their own investigation. If, on the basis of the in formation .shed a conviction is obtained, the Secret Witness w.ll be entitled to the specific reward offered. The Secret Witness will then be advised through a coded general delivery letter and will be asked to provide identification of his original information-a torn off corner of his original letter. . ." From the fantasy aspect of the plan, it's Dick Tracy all over again. Its the thrill of secret codes and whispered words and strange faces at the General Delivery window. It's James Bond and J. Edgar Hoover rolled into one. The promotional aspect is even better. It's William Randolph Hearst sending a dynamite expert to the site of the sinking of the "Maine." It's the Denver Post exploding a keg of gunpowder on the roof just to make the loudest noise in Colorado. It's $25,000 for being the first to fly from New York to Paris. The social aspects of this plan, however, are downright frightening. It's the fellow down the block who's always wanted to get that hippie freak across the street. It's the bounty hunter of the old West who got his man and I want mah money raght here an' now, sherrif. It's the nine-year-old kid with the swastika on his arm who saw his uncle's hidden radio and told the Gestapo because he would get another medal. We are very disappointed to see a newspaper with the high ideals and traditions that typify American journalism take a course such as this. This "Secret Witness" plan is not the tremendous and inspired public service that its designers imagine it to be. It is only a publicity stunt that for a while will attract its share of curious onlookers would-be spies. Eventually it has to die the same unregarded death of boredom and faddism that hits ever ill-conceived sideshow. But then, there's nothing wrong with publicity stunts as far as the run of them go. They're innocent enough, meant only for entertainment and attention-getting, in most cases. This is not one of those cases, however. This is the kind of act society can do without. The "Secret Witness" plan preys on the worst aspects of our society for |
