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
What this amounts to is a censorship of the small and occasional
advertisers by the large and permanent ones; this censorship is common,
and sometimes it is made to wear the aspect of virtue. The best-paying
advertisements are those of automobiles and other leisure-class
luxuries; as such advertisers will not publish alongside cheap patent
medicine fakes, publications like “Collier’s” and the “Outlook” make a
boast of censoring their advertisements. But when it comes to protecting
their high-priced advertisers, these publications are, as I have shown,
every bit as unscrupulous as the sellers of cancer-cures and
headache-powders. I, who wish to attack these high-priced advertisers,
am forced to publish what I have to say in a paper which can only exist
by publishing the advertisements of cancer-cures and headache-powders.
This is very humiliating, but what can I do? Stop writing? If I could
have my way, of course, I would write for a publication having a large
circulation and publishing honest reading matter and honest advertising
matter. But no such publication exists; and I have to decide the
question, which does the least harm, a publication with honest
advertising matter and dishonest reading matter, or a publication with
honest reading matter and dishonest advertising matter.
Also, of course, there will be censorship of advertisements containing
news. If the newspaper is suppressing certain facts, it will not permit
you to make known these facts, even for money. The “Los Angeles Times,”
although it bitterly opposed single tax, was willing to take my money
for an advertisement in favor of single tax; but the “Times” would not
take my money for an advertisement reporting a meeting at which the
truth about Russia was told. The “Times” would not sell me space to make
known that the Socialists of the city had challenged the Superintendent
of Schools to debate the truth of certain false statements which he had
made about Russia.
In Louisville is the “People’s Church,” conducted by an independent
clergyman in a theatre, and attended by one or two thousand people every
Sunday. The “Louisville Courier-Journal” and its evening edition, the
“Times,” have not contented themselves with suppressing all news about
these meetings for several years; they have also refused all
advertisements of this “People’s Church.” (Since this was written they
have put the “People’s Church” out of business!)
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