The Brass Check: A Study of American JournalismSinclair, Upton
General
The Brass Check: A Study of American Journalism
Sinclair, Upton
Associated Press; Journalism -- United States; Press -- United States
She found Justice So-and-so. His court was in session and he could not
be interrupted. But in the South, you understand, anything from a court
to a fire-engine will stop to pick up a lady’s handkerchief. And
moreover, the father of M. C. S. is a judge, so she knows about them.
She walked down the aisle and addressed his honor with her quietest
smile, and—the court proceedings halted while the necessary papers were
signed, and a Socialist muck-raker was released from jail.
The reason for this step was our desire to test in the higher courts the
question whether a man whose conduct had been “that of a perfect
gentleman” could properly be found guilty of “using threatening, abusive
and insulting behavior.” In order to appeal the case it was necessary to
pay the fine under protest, so I paid one dollar, and came out on the
last day—to behold the crowd of ten thousand people, and the mounted
policemen, and the moving-picture operators in the windows of nearby
office-buildings. And so, day after day, we were enabled to give
information about the Colorado coal-strike to a group of reporters for
the New York papers!
Several of these reporters were men of conscience. One, Isaac Russell of
the “Times,” became our friend, and day after day he would tell us of
his struggles in the “Times” office, and how nearly every word favorable
to myself or to the strikers was blue-penciled from his story. So during
this Broadway demonstration, and the affair in Tarrytown which followed
it, we lived, as it were, on the inside of the “Times” office, and
watched the process of strangling the news. We have seen the tears come
into Russell’s eyes as he told about what was done. And on top of it
all, Mr. Adolph Ochs gave a banquet to the “Times” staff, to celebrate
some anniversary of the paper, and got up and made a speech to them—a
speech to Isaac Russell!—telling what a wonderful institution he had
made out of the “Times,” and how it stood consecrated to the public
welfare and the service of the truth!
P. S.—Isaac Russell reads the above, and corrects one serious error. He
writes in emphatic capitals:
“WE REPORTERS PAID FOR THAT DINNER!”
CHAPTER XXV
THE CASE OF THE “A. P.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account