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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (April 11, 1961)
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD. ORE. TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1961 A 13 Jk 'ft JJ ill. J "All I know is what I read in the newspapers." . Will Rogers said it. It goes for everyone in Ore gon who is interested in what is happening at the- State house. , Practically all legislative news you read, listen to some one else read over the radio, or watch someone else read on television, first is written by a member of Oregon's most elite group of reporters, the Statehouse press corps. Most information that the public, state officials, and leg islators themselves get about government and lawmaking first is filtered through the minds and typwriters of the even dozen full time news writers who make their head quarters in the daylight-basement pressroom at the Capitol. Their importance cannot be overestimated. They are the best-informed people in Salem in terms of "the big picture." Their job is to communi cate this broad knowledge to the public through air forms of mass media - press, radio and TV. On Seen Daily . Every Oregon citizen who wants to know about the peo ple he elected to take care of the public's business depends on . these few reporters who are on the scene daily to write first-hand accounts. Every Oregon editor (dail ies, weeklies, periodicals) who tries to analyze news events and influence public opinion depends to a large extent not on his own personal observa tions at the Statehouse but on written observations of the press corps. Every public 'employee, from the governor in the ex ecutive suite to legislators in the marble halls to a highway department flagman in a re mote and dusty construction shack, depends on these re porters to give accurate, time ly, unbiased news reports. . The reporters have a lot in common with the legislators, besides i long hours of work and low pay. - Temperamentally, they must be able to get along well with people, Inspire confi dence, keep cool under some times agonizing pressure, fight boredom and cynicism, ignore' unfair criticism, and find their greatest satisfaction in their own pride in their Work.t ' There are differences. The reporters are more inclined to be intellectuals than the legis lators, although both groups probably are above average in education and mental en dowments. The newsmen also tend to be more shy and mod est about themselves, less ego tistical, less sure they know all the answers, more inclined to question motives and reasons. They have the egghead's healthy skepticism, combined with a disarming sense of hu mor. They are hard to impress, and can spot a phony quicker than -anyone. Whereas a good lawmaker's reward sometimes may be public acclaim and election to higher office, a good reporter's reward is another Statehouse assignment. -Salaries Generally Lower Most of the newsmen work a 50-60 hour week, and some get no overtime pay. Their salaries, generally, are lower than .those of state employees with 'comparable responsibili ties. ' Their output is almost in credible. Up; to 5,000 words of copy (news stories) per day are sent out by -both the Associated Press and United Vress Inter national. Both wire services have j two reporters. That means' i each reporter may write up to 2,500 words (about twice? the length of this col umn) per day, after covering the day's events (committee meetings, House and Senate sessions, press conferences, in dividual interviews). This does not leave much time for re jection, double - checking, or prose - polishing. Reporters for individual newspapers at the Statehouse depend largely on AP and UPI for daily routine or basic news, and then work on their THE SECRET OF Without habit-forming drugs A nw technlqut comblnai hundreds of tiny bead of medication In a capsule. Half of these dissolve to induce sleep quickly. The other half Is gradually released to sustain and deepen your natural sleep. Take Nita.Rest tonight for safe, uninter rupted sleep. Wakt up refreshed tomorrow. You sleep soundly or money back NO PRESCRIPTION REQUIRED EV.cLains DRUG CENTRE Thrifty Gren Stamps N. Central SP 2-7111 By Marguerite W. Wright own stories of top events. Some have their own col umns, or write occasional fea tures or editorials in addition. Both wire services send out weekly round-ups, too. ' While there is cooperation to avoid needless duplication, there also is a lively sense of usually good - natured compe tition between the AP (serv ing 11 dailies plus radio and TV stations) and the UPI (serving 14 dailies, a weekly, radio and TV), between the Oregonian, Oregon Journal and Portland - Reporter, and between the Salem Oregon Statesman and Capital Jour nal. The contest is not so much for the old - fashioned dra matics of stop - the - presses "scoop" as it Is for the nro- fessional satisfaction of doing a better all-around job than me otner fellow. Unwritten Rules There are unwritten rules in the newsman's code - ir responsible writing, sensation alism, or deliberate distortion is immediately recognized and resented by the other report ers. Brisk, bright, laconic writing is admired. . A good reported would ra ther have the respect of his peers than sit in the councils of the mighty, and any news man who toadies to high state official or is suspect of beine a spokesman or patsy for some group of politicians is held in low esteem by the rather rig id purists in the pressroom. In these respects, the State- house press corps is made up of typical contemporary news men, not the legendary booze besotted inkslinger of Grade B movie fame. Most of these men would rather spend their few leisure hours at home with their kids, working in their gardens, reading a book, or listening to good music than ' hanging around bars and : barflies, Their occupational hazards are ulcers and overweight, ra ther than delirium tremens They spend Sunday mornings in church or lawn-mowing, not getting over bang-overs. Dean (senior in years of Statehouse service) of the press corps is Paul Harvey Jr.. head of the Salem Associated Press Bureau and a Statehouse veteran of 24 years. No rela tion to the radio commenta tor of the same name, Harvey is the son of a Tacoma news man and father of three sons, two of them newspapermen too. Educated at Columbia, he is 48, .' and active ' In church and community affairs. His assistant is Fred Mar tin, 28, (University of Denver, Portland State College), eight years reporting experience, married, two children, reads, gardens. UPI Bureau Head Doug Grlpp,'28, (Portland State College) is head of the UPI Salem Bureau after only four years reporting, less than two years at the Statehouse; married, one child; collects records, writes fiction in spare time.'. His assistant is A. (for Ann) H. Pearson, 25, (Smith Col lege) two years experience in cluding reporting the Alaska Legislature, newswritting in Tangiers, traveling in Europe. Merv Shoemaker is the Ore gonian's veteran political re porter and has the distinction of being the only grandfather in the press corps. His assistant is . Harold Hughes, 44 (University of Ken tucky, "Harvard, U. of O.), 21 years experience; married, two children; enjoys working in his rose garden, collects Japanese prints, records. Doug McKean, 49, (College of Idaho, Reed College, North west College of Law), 24 years experience, long - time edito rial writer for the Oregon Journal, now political editor; married, four children;, serves on State Board of Education (appointed by Gov. Robert D. Holmes) and is a regular pan elist on Holmes' KOIN televi sion news program. His assistant is Clarence Za itz, 30, 11 years experience; married, four sons; spends his spare time building a do - it yourself home in Portland. Robert McBride, 29, (Uni versity of Washington), is cov ering his first legislative ses sion for the Portland Report er; married, three children; does free-lance writing, plays tennis. Only Bachelor Doug Seymour, 38, (Univer sity of Oregon), 14 years ex perience, covering his third session for the Capital Jour nal; only bachelor in the press corps, collects books and rec ords, takes part in Pentacle amateur theatrical produc tions. Tom Wright, 40, (Universi ty of Oregon) 14 years experi ence, covering his second ses sion for the Oregon States man; married, four daughters; only press corps member with experience "on the other side of the fence" (press secretary for Governor Holmes); pho tography and Army Reserve duty as major in Civil Affairs TheyTl Do It Every Time" By Jimmy Hatlo DlDJA EVER READ THE LABEL ON A PRODUCT LIKE THIS AND JUST PICTURE VOUF? OWH 6RANOMAW IN HER LITTLE FARM KITCHEN STIRRING UP A BATCH OF JAM? PICTURE DO YOU 6ET nWmk 1 1 : ; . I 5 and Military Government unit are spare-time pursuits. Only full-time radio - TV man covering the Statehouse is Robert Rlchter of KOAC radio and TV, 31 years old, (University of Iowa, Reed Col lege) married, two children; enjoys books, music, Rlchter works much as do the other 11 presscorpsmen, but specializes in broadcast interviews with each legislator (which have proven newsworthy in them selves) and has a weekly news round-up plus daily programs. Noteworthy for their con tribution to their listeners' un derstanding of issues are Tom Lawson McCall of KGW radio and TV, and ex-Governor Holmes of KOIN-TV. Both make Statehouse trips and draw upon their government al experience for their pro grams, each unique in his me dia. The other two part time members of the press corps are Dan Sellard of the Eugene Register-Guard, and me, the only . independent Statehouse columnist. . What kind of a job is the press corps doing? Dr. Frank Roberts, politi cal science professor at Port land State College and chief clerk of the House, summed up the adverse criticism when he pointed out the major fault with Legislative press coverage is the need for more comprehensive stories, lack of continuity, not enough backgrounding In continuing stories. Sometimes reports do not accurately reflect parliamen tary situations or inter-rela tionships of events, and when an event is not described in proper context distortion may occur, Roberts said. .-. Inaccuracies Cited One senator said newsmen should do a better job of re porting votes in committees and roll call votes on the floor. Some specific inaccu racies were cited. Travis Cross, the governor's press secretary, praised the press corps' "reputation for objectivity" and said it is "a credit to them that their per sonal political registration Is not a matter of concern.1' Another criticism is that, al though reporters - are doing more interpretive writing than in "the old days" when wire services demanded only straight" reporting, there re mains a need for more "report ing in depth" - analyzing peo ple and Issues, ironically, the same persons who deplore lack of interpretation also de plore attempts by reporters to proble motives and make judg ments. All in all, there is general agreement that this sessicn -considered one of the dullest in history by reporters - is getting the best coverage of any session in Oregon history. Reporters have to work hard er to find headline news that can compete for space with the much bigger headlines from ton, Laos, Moscow, and Af the New Frontiers in Washlng rica. But, if they are interest ed at all; .Oregon readers will be better informed about this Legislature than ever before. ON FBI LIST-George Martin Bradley Jr., above, a convict ed robber, forger and coun terfeiter, has been added to the FBI's list of "Ten Most Wanted Fugitives." Bradley, 29, is charged with the solo robbery of a bank in Stuart, Fla., in January, 1961. (UPI Telephoto) Small Worlds Around Us By Lynn M. Watkins (Register and Trtbuna Syndicate. 1961) In Battle of Bugs ' " Man On Short End The battle between man and bug is a continuing strug gle; once in a while we think we are ahead, then later we begin to doubt it and reluc tantly mark up a high score for the other side. The trouble is we are the ones keeping the score and ofttimes we get carried away with "wishful thinking." But the other team is still on the field and occasionally actual ly carrying the ball. Because bugs are easy to come by and because any ex periment with them, no mat ter how cruel it might seem, is condoned, the serious stu dent wonders just how much punishment a bug can stand under controlled conditions. Some scientists have wonder ed whether or not the same female superiority exists in the insect world as it appar ently does in other animal orders. Identical Feeding In one experiment the In sect known commonly as the earwig was selected. It's easy to tell the boys from the girls in this species. All the males were placed in pne little cage; all the females in another. Both groups were carefully fed the same amount of the same food at the same time. By the end of the first 10 days they were,, all fat and somewhat listless; they need ed more exercise. So the feed ing was slacked off a little. Soon they became active and alert. Perhaps there is a real lesson here in over-indulgence. They were to be sub jected to various poisons to see, if possible, if there was a noticeable difference in the amount of the poison that could be tolerated by the males or females. Isolated Cages Three males and three fe males were placed in isolated cages, each sex separate. The poison was carefully meas ured and sprayed o n each group. Careful records were kept of the time lapse - that interval between the applica tion of the poison and the time when they keeled over. Dif ferent varieties of poisons were used on each succeed ing group and the results were the same. Actually, the results were what was expected-the most survivors each time were fe males. And what was even more surprising, many of them laid eggs, even while in the "gas chamber," and later died. Some survived, even in the face of what appeared to be certain death. It is Impossible to say for sure that this percentage of survivors would be constant throughout the insect world, but ,it is reasonable to assume it would. Generations of flies have been subjected to similar ordeals, and some have reach ed a stage of immunity where they become almost inde structible. ' Peculiar, that so long ago, when these lowly creatures were undergoing development as a species, some fsr-sighted providence could have fore seen the time when their sys tems -would . be subjected to modern day methods of de- MOVE TO RUSSIA Columbus, Ohio-niPl) - The tempo of Secretary of State Ted W. Brown's office was upset recently when a Day ton firm reported it wanted to move Its headquarters to Russia. Activity returned to normal when they learned that this particular Russia is in Shelby County, Ohio. POISON OAK BOTHER YOUf WORRY NO MORE Use B & H Poisen Oak Lotion. Satisfaction Guar antied, at your favorito drug store. struction and built-in coun ter-checks were installed to preserve the species. Peculiar, too, that Nature instilled in the female, the ability to re sist and overcome the ravages of time and poisons and still carry on the work of creation. Grange News Central Point Grange Colored slides were shown by Phillip Krouse of Apple gate for the regular meeting of Central Point Grange Fri day. . , Mrs. Morris Frink, chair man of the youth committee of the Grange, made the ar rangements for Krouse to show and explain the slides he took en route and while in Washington, D. C, where he attended the National 4-H conference last year. He was also sent to the 4-H Congress in Chicago last December. Mr. and Mrs. Donald Kil bourn and Mrs. Stella Purker pile were elected to be candi dates for initiation. Standing committees made their re ports. HEC Chairman Mrs. NO PUBLICITY London - (UPD - The Daily Sketch today said a reporter "met an actress yesterday who said she wasn't interested in publicity so we're not giving her any." Frink announced the next club meeting will be with Mrs. Cecil Keenan on April 26. The members decided to have a farewell party for Mr. and Mrs. Walter Mang Thurs day, April 13, to start with a potluck supper at 7 p.m. Each family is to take a well filled basket of food and their own table service. For entertain ment there will be square dancing and card playing. The Mangs are moving to Santa Cruz, Calif. , Mr. and Mrs. Chester Wendt were installed as assistant steward and lady assistant steward by Dee Hendrickson, installing officer, and Mrs. Arnold Bohnert, marshal. Central Point Grange will have other Granges of t h e county as guests on visitation night April 21. All visiting women are to take cookies. The members of Central Point Grange will furnish sand wiches. . Serving committee for the evening were Mr. and Mrs. Walter Jensen, Mr. and Mrs. Scott Hamilton, and Benton Boyce. , Auto Insurance Trouble? Uninsured Accident? Violations? , Teen-Age Problems? Confidential Service EASY IOW RATES ": ' Alio ' Preferred Rates for Preferred Drivers . ' . , t Arkin-McCullough Insurance, Inc. 328 So. Central Phono SP 3-7441 Funeral Questions We Are Asked at ! MEMORY GARDENS 3 MEMORIAL PARK iWl J. CI ItvlCD A I UAlir "The Chapel of Memories" . "The Last Supper" T 1395 Arnold Lane SP 3-7338 Does stato law require the use of a waterproof BURIAL VAULT? NO.! No reputable salesperson would make such a statement, unless he were himself mistaken! If such a statement is made to you, ask the salesperson to put it in writing. Then ask him to check further on the . subject as you are sure he is mistaken. - Exactly what It a waterproof burial vault? It is a grave receptacle in which the casket is placed to inhibit water seepage. It may be made of a variety of materials, the most common of which are cement, metal, and plastic, ,,- ; If then, the burial vault it NOT require, what IS . . .?. This Is a variable subject! Some states have definite requirements, other don't. If you wish a detailed ex plnatlon of this matter contact the reputable funeral director or cemetery of your choice. The Veteran To fie Honored This Week is . ROLLIE 1. DAVIS y I ii Pill 1 The special dream and lifetime project for millions of Ameri cans is to own their own homes. But the biggest hurdle to jump is a sizeable down payment. The number of Americans who ' get over this hurdle increases each year. About 35 million fam ilies are in their own homes right now. And for many of them U.S. Savings Bonds made the differ ence between "shopping for" and "owning" a home. A habit that pays off - After the war many returning veterans and their families used their Bond reserves for college educations, new business ven tures, and down payments on ' new homes. Since that time thousands of Americans have . used their Bonds to buy, furnish, and mod ernize their homes. Bonds for building block U.S. Savings Bonds are guar anteed to grow in value by Uncle Sam. You can buy them where you bank or on the "installment plan" where you work, for as little as $2.50 a week. Your bonds are replaced free if lost or destroyed. And you can get your money, plus interest, anytime you need it Every Bond you buy is a share in a stronger America. Why not start saving for your dream home today? "Savings Bonds and a home belong in everyone's future1 uxyt O. O. Powell, President, National Auociation of Real Estate Board "U.S. Savinga Bonds and home ownership are two ways of providing security for the future a worthy goal for every family and for the nation. A sound economy depends upon thrift. ' A strong country is a land where men are free in mind, in spirit, and in the right to own prop erty. The nation's nearly 70,000 Realtors urge America's young families to invest in U.S. Sav- -ings Bonds as a beginning toward achievement . 01 inese goals. ",: . - (Ml You save more than money with 0 0 0 Buy them where you work or bank Vw 30 ywi Amtr lea's yuwtparxrs Ksvt pub I it M Bavin Bonds adt at no etui to thi uovtrnmtnt. Th Treasury sWT a. ijrparimrru w graiwjui id t nm iiuvniainsj vHWKH tvus wu t ntwtpop tor thiir patriotic support, i . Medford Mail Tribune
