Page 2 University Daily Kansan Wednesday, Nov. 19, 1952
College Leaders Favor Free Press
College administrators were asked last month "How much freedom should the student newspaper have?"
The question was asked by Editor and Publisher magazine and the answers indicated student editors should have "all possible freedom" provided "student responsibility go along with it."
Here are some of the replies as released by the magazine:
President Deane W. Malott of Cornell: "Faculty censorship might make for conformity, but the course would lead only to the withering of a healthy force on campus."
President Robert Gordon Sproul of the University of California: "It is good for students to carry full responsibility for the policies and performance of a campus newspaper, and the mistakes they make are not only effective educationally, but are less important than the administration and public think at the time they occur."
"After all, one of the basic freedoms we are all trying to protect is the freedom to criticize and complain—the freedom to 'gripe.'"
President Milton S. Eisenhower of Pennsylvania State college: "I believe in pretty full freedom for the student newspaper providing good judgment, good taste and responsibility are exercised and the best interests of the college are protected."
P. I. Reed, director of journalism at the University of West Virginia: "The faculty of the School of Journalism assumes the moral right to choose as the student department heads of the newspaper only its men and women who rank highest in grades, industry, manners, good disposition, personal integrity and high ideals."
Dr. E. B. Lemon, Dean of Administration at Oregon State college: "We believe in imposing the fewest restrictions and controls necessary to assume publication of a good representative newspaper. At the same time, the president's office has an obligation as a last resort, in protecting the institution, if it becomes necessary against the efforts of irresponsible campus journalism."
Disadvantage Evident In Chest Collections
This year's Campus Chest committee is working at a disadvantage and the results are evident.
At the beginning of the second and final week of the drive on Monday, tabulations showed that collections were only 10 per cent complete, a miserable record for a school with as much apparent wealth as KU.
Ten per cent complete means in plain terms that only one of every 10 students has taken time to give to this drive, which is actually seven appeals in one.
The disadvantage? It's a big one, one over which the committee has no control. There was no disaster in this area this year. No floods—no mass destruction. No glaring evidence of ravages to remind students that their contributions are needed to help those who have suffered.
Last year, part of Lawrence was hit by the flood which rendered thousands homeless in the Kaw Valley. There were reminders close at hand for students. They needed no special urging to contribute to the Campus Chest.
This year most of the flood damage has been cleaned up, and the memory of it is all that remains.
A dominant selling factor in last year's appeal to students was the closeness of suffering and destruction to the campus. This year that best-of-all sales arguments is no longer available. But the need for contributions is greater than ever.
Chest officials have set no monetary goal to shoot for this year. We believe they are entirely correct in their belief that the main emphasis of this year's campaign should be the attempt at collecting from as high a percentage of the student and faculty body as possible.
This emphasis leaves the amount of each contribution up to the contributor.
Another important consideration, we believe, is the fact that each donation received by the Campus Chest is divided among seven worthy causes—two on the national, two on the international and one on the local levels,'and two organizations on our own campus.
The Chest will be the only ASC-recognized charity drive on the hill this year. There will be no repeat solicitations month after month as in former years.
The need for the Campus Chest is great. The campus response should show we haven't forgotten how miserable conditions can be for other people. It should show that we want to help relieve the suffering of others.
The time is now—today. Give all you can to the Campus Chest.
Short Ones
The only trouble with the traveling group which presented "Carmen" on the Hill last Wednesday evening was it didn't travel fast enough.
It has been suggested that now that we have a committee to guide the Daily Kansan from going astray with its editorials, we appoint one for the football team, to keep them from losing; the Union, to see that all students use its facilities; the drama casts, to make certain all their presentations please all the students; and, in short, any student presentation to make it conform to the will of the majority.
Bv DON SARTEN
I have read weighty books and asked learned men and still I do not know how the state defends the loyalty oath it requires of its subjects.
What rebuttal does the government have for the critics who point out that a true Communist would have no qualms about swearing he's not a member of a group advocating overthrow of our national government?
While on the other hand, intelligent and moral minded citizens, proud of their constitutional right to belief in any political party and financially secure, proudly tell the authorities to go to hell.
Feeling is building up against a government that insists on knowing the political beliefs of its subjects. It can be felt in the sympathetic undertoes discussing plight of professors who are losing jobs because they do not conform to edicts handed down from above.
On the surface it looks to many people like most of the organizations the professors are accused of contributing to have a peace theme. Could it be possible that the accused were sincerely searching for this elusive object of all mankind?
Lest this begin to sound pinkish, let's admit the Communist influence in any one organization. Should a man or woman have their reputations questioned, and jobs withdrawn, simply because of a curiosity to "find out for myself"?
Who's to be next in an Un-Ameri-
can committee's witchhunt. Will it
be me? Or will it be you . . .
On the debit side, this is written by a man who discounts the power of communists in this country. It is written by a person who definitely feels we're losing the faith of good people in their government—for a few stinking Communists.
This is not right. Not when the people of this nation not only believe in Democracy but love it. Not when more and more students are poured out of our colleges and universities, equipped with academic programs and more emphasis point out the advantages of one belief—the faults in another.
Don't sell the people short. Some of them will get confused once in a while. They can even be led by forces motivated by a desire for power and personal ambitions. But not for very long. Not by any party, under any name.
Daily Hansan
University of Kansas Student newspaper
News Room KU 251 Ad Room KU 373
Member of the Kansas Press Assn., National Editorial Assn. Inland Daily Press Association, American Journalist Association, Represented by the National Editorial Service, 420 Madison Avenue, N.Y. City,
EDITORIAL STAFF
NEWS STAFF
Editor-in-Chief...Roger Arrington
Editorial Assistants...Chris Burch
Managing Editor ----- Diane Stonebraker
Asst. Mgr. Editors ----- Mary Cooper, Boa
Stewart, Chuck Zuegen
Max Thompson
City Editor ----- Dan Evans
Society Editor ----- Jeanne Fitzgerald
Sports Editor ----- Don Nielsen
Asst. Sports Editor ----- Clarke Keys,
Telegraph Editor ----- Chuck Morelock
Picture Editor ----- Phil Neumann
News Advisor ----- Dorsten
Victor Damlay
BUSINESS STAFF
Business Manager ... Clark Akers
Advertising Mgr. ... Elbert Spivey
National Mgr. ... Virginia Mackey
Circulation Mgr. ... Patricia Vance
District Mgr. .. Tom Bentley
Promotion Mgr. ... Don Landes
Business Adviser ... Dale Novotny
Mail subscription rates: $3 a semester or less. Mail subscription rate: $2 per month (recently). Published in Lawrence, Kan., every afternoon during the University year except Saturdays and Sundays. University holidays are limited to Monday through Friday. Class master Sept. 17, 1910, at Lawrence Kan. Post Office under act of March 3.
As a foreigner I express these views to my hosts with reluctance but it must be said that in the eyes of many Europeans the freedom of expression in this country is weakening, and in my former university at Cambridge, where the university editor is also elected by the other journalists each semester, censorship of any kind would be unthinkable.
You are reported as saying it is hard to please everyone. It is not only very hard but it is impossible, however objective your news reporting and however careful your comment.
A control, however, would cause the Daily Kansan to lose its character as a newspaper and it would become a news sheet, neither subjective nor objective, without individuality, independence or responsibility. Its policy would be dependent on the majority decision of campus politicians, and, the poor creature who is persuaded to call himself "editor" will be in the position of a captain without authority to direct the steering of his ship.
In advocating the change Mr. Dana Anderson is reported to have said "The Daily Kansan is not on a voluntary subscription basis" and that the students are entitled to have a voice in the paper.
Editor of the Daily Kansan:
Briton Assails Censors
To take the last point first, this kind of argument has been the excuse for almost all censorships. I saw the destruction in Shanghai of both the American and English newspapers in August 1949. It was said to have been the will of the people. Indeed, at the time there was little doubt that the large majority were not in sympathy with the views of the papers. Nevertheless, two lights of freedom and independence were snuffed out.
Mr. Anderson also says censorship is justified in this case because the Daily Kansan is not on a voluntary subscription basis. If he finds this compulsory subscription objectionable, then he should be agitating to put it on a voluntary basis, not trying to destroy the paper freedom.
Dean Woodruff and Mr. Wilson are reported to have stated the stories on housing will harm future enrollment. Whether the editor be right or wrong, independent and unfettered expression of ideas is the life blood of a great university. If Dean Woodruff can encourage such a spirit his successors will not have trouble getting the youth of the state in but will have trouble finding room for everyone else that wishes to come here.
Geoffrey Weston exchange student
Let Drake's Do The Worrying Enjoy Thanksgiving This Year.
Order the pumpkin and mince pies—fruit cake too you'll want when your family and guests come home for the holiday.
CALL DRAKE'S TODAY.
DRAKE'S
"Drake's for Bakes"
907 Mass.
Phone 61