OCR Text |
Show Journalism. Collier's copies the words of an old Phlladel-phian, Phlladel-phian, in which he tells what the Ledger was under un-der Childs, deplores Its present degeneration, and says: "Its deterioration has been due entirely to its fear that honest criticism of those deserving criticism might reflect unfavorably upon its advertising ad-vertising accounts. To the five years' fight of the North American with the "local gang" is due more than anything else the reform accomplished in Philadelphia during the past year. Yet this paper was constantly sneered at by the Ledger as "a yellow journal, seeking notoriety. When the machine's finish came the Ledger scrambled on the tailboard of the band wagon and made as much noise as its feeble voice could produce." pro-duce." We copy the foregoing because it is a good description de-scription of what is going on in a great many places. The fear of hurting business and the malice which uses the columns of some papers to punish supposed enemies, have done more to lower journalism in this country than all other things combined, The journal that surrenders Its sense of right and by the act betrays the public to Increase In-crease its revenues is a pitiable thing. The journalist jour-nalist whoso prejudices make it impossible for him to be just to an opponent is one who should never write editorials. The trust which the public pub-lic gives a journal, when betrayed, is a wound inflicted in-flicted upon public opinion and a base betrayal of the implied contract which binds a journal to be just. And when an editor makes his journal a vehicle to minister to his own spites and hates, not only does ho degrade himself, but he perpetrates perpe-trates a shameful wrong upon the public. Doing business on the dead square counts in no other place so much as upon a public journal. Any other course pursued by a newspaper is a crime of the same nature as that of poisoning a well. |