Show The TIle Press And Nixon To understand many of the stories stones written about President Nixon today one must understand understand understand under under- stand the background of the reporters in Washington and New York who are turning out so much of the copy ADMITTEDLY on their part and perhaps understandably understandably understandably understand understand- ably most members of the working press are left of center center center cen cen- ter or liberals That is true also of television tors Beginning in the fifties a number of these reporters joined in a bandwagon attack on Nixon because of his probes into the past of liberals with connections to organizations linked in some way to communist communist communist com com- causes IN THE TIlE presidential campaign campaign campaign cam cam- of 1960 John F. F Kennedy and Nixon the great majority were for Ken Ken- nedy They vilified Nixon in inno inno inno no uncertain terms first because because because be be- cause he was the conservative conservative conservative conserva conserva- tive candidate and they were overwhelmingly liberal and secondly because Nixon didn't handle his campaign and his press relations as effectively as did the late President Ken Ken- nedy Some of them went so far in their claims that Nixon's Nixons Nixons Nixon's Nixons Nixon's Nix Nix- ons on's election would be a national national national na na- na- na disaster that they are still trying to make good that opinion they dont don't want to tobe tobe tobe be proven wrong Keeping this in mind one can understand the treatment the President gets so often in the news columns An AP story the day after a student demonstration in Washington is a perfect example Run on many front pages across the nation on a Sunday morning morning morning morn morn- ing the story told of President President President dent Nixons Nixon's personal encounter encounter encounter ter with students at the Lincoln Lincoln lincoln Lin lin- coln Memorial where the President had gone at a late hour in an obvious conscientious conscientious conscientious effort to help bring about better mutual understanding DID THE news story include include include in in- clude any student praise of Nixon for this personal effort which horrified secret service servicemen servicemen servicemen men Did it include any student student student stu stu- dent praise of his courage in meeting face to face the militants militants mil who have been so Unruly Un tm- un unruly ruly on many occasions It did not instead it quoted three year 20 year old ld girls one of whom recklessly charged that the President really concerned with why we are here Another was quoted as saying most of the President President President dent had said was absurd A third girl was quoted as saying saying saying say say- ing the President did not make sense ONE OF the great tragedies of the day is the shocking tone and volume of such press bias One can also easily detect de- de teet it in television commentaries commentaries commentaries of the Presidents President's press conferences-after conferences which nine tenths of the commentators distort or criticize the Presidents President's Presidents President's Presidents President's dents dent's words The nation deserves deserves deserves de de- de- de serves something better |