Illinois newspaper directory. History of the Illinois press association

Illinois Newspaper Directory and Historyquality and quantity of each are to be largely determined by locality and circumstances,and here again is demanded the indispensible requisite of common sense."A vast amount of the interest of the paper depends upon the incisiveness withwhich every item is prepared. Of all things it should avoid dreariness. Every paragraph,whether of news or editorial, should be well written and in the true journalistic vein.The more racy, gossipy, or even conversational, a newspaper is made the more interestingto the reader. It should keep out of beaten paths, and freshness and originalityshould pervade every page and every issue. One of the chief merits of every successfuljournalist has been that he did things differently from others."A newspaper must not be simply a narrative. Hence the editorial must not bedisregarded. It gives the paper character and force, and individuality. The journalisticinstinct finds no truer expression than in its selection of subjects for editorials as wellas their methods of treatment. Editorials should be brief, "catchy," pertinent, suggestiveand upon themes which possess a direct interest to the reader. Numbers of papers,metropolitan and rural, fail dismally in their editorial department, not because theydo not contain able and well written editorials, but because they select subjects ofno special interest to their readers and then treat them in a dreary and unentertainingmanner. Much depends upon the phraseology of a heading. Mr. Joseph Pulitzer, whois not bad authority, declares that the people do not know a good item unless it istold to them in the heading. The caption should tell what the article is about in sucha way as to attract attention. If it is a lengthy news article, either the heading or thefirst paragraph should indicate the contents of all that is to follow: if an editorial,it should hit the nail on the head in the first sentence, and keep on hitting it to the end."No one is fitted to write editorials who does not mingle with men. To preparebreezy, practical articles, calculated to engage and influence popular thought, he mustdraw his inspiration fresh from the people. To sit up in the fifth story of a printingestablishment, amid books and cobwebs, away from any contact with the world, andundertake to direct public sentiment upon the vital issues of the day, is to insure animpracticable, theoretical and musty view of things that will divest any paper of editorialpower. A journalist must be in close and familiar touch with the people among whomhis paper circulates. For a lack of this essential sympathy many of our city dadiesfail to exercise the influence over the masses which they should."In his contact with the world, the country editor possesses a great advantageover his city brother, and hence there is every reason why his editorial work shouldpossess a freshness and a pertinence to the live issues of the time. Driven by a multiplicityof cares, he is constantly tempted to disregard editorial duties. They constitute,however, a most important department of his profession, and he cannot afford toneglect them."Editorial work, is, in fact, the highest and truest mission of a newspaper. Thepurpose of journalism is not simply the collation of news and the publishing of advertisements.Its real object is to mold public sentiment, and a blank editorial page makesa newspaper almost as meaningless as a man without a brain."Common sense also implies business sense. No journalist can be truly successfulwho has not business ideas. Even though he never enter the counting room, he is notfitted to write upon the great economic questions which engage public attention, unlesshe has some practical knowledge of affairs himself. Mr. Greeley perhaps stands as theonly great American journalist who was not also a business man, but he understood itsvalue well enough to associate with himself one who supplied this necessary elementof management. Upon financial prosperity of a newspaper depends all of its prosperity,and likewise independence and influence. A judicious expenditure of money, correct