THE TRANSATLANTIC EDITOR

Tuapeka Times, Volume XXIV, Issue 1903, 8 June 1892, Page 6

THE TRANSATLANTIC EDITOR

Mr Julias Chambers has been the " managing editor " of several important American newspapers, and therefore knows what he is writing about when he gives an article on that most important functionary of Transatlantic journalism. The managing editor of an American paper has not only to control the policy of the newspaper, but also to regulate the features of interest which are to be taken up ; to direct special correspondents, and various other operations. He must have a combination of qualities which are rarely found in a single individual. Among others, perhaps the most important is extraordinary sharpness. Mr Chambers gives some wonderful instances of real strokes of genius by managing editors in times of emergency. One of the most remarkable cases is the early publication of a Presidential Message by the ' Herald.' The * Herald ' was able to publish the Message in full on the morning of the day it was sent to the Senate. Nobody knew how this was managed, What happened was this : The Associated Press, which is the great news agency of America, was informed by somebody that the 'Herald' had obtained a surreptitious copy of the Message from the office of the Associated Press, from whioh it was not to be sent until the following morning. The agent of the Associated Press went to the editor of the ♦ Herald ' to protest against such conduct. As a matter of fact the whole story was unfounded, but the editor of the ' Herald ' was too astute to let his interviewer know this ; on the contrary, he so managed the dialogue as to give the Associated Pressman the idea that the story was well founded :—: — "Very well," said the visitor, rising to go ; | 'if that be the case, the only thing we can do is to send out the Message to-night, even at the expense of breaking faith with the President. O»r customers must be properly served." This wai as the executive editor had hoped. He sent for the foreman of the composing room, and instructed him to ba in readiness to set an extra page at a late hour, as it was expected that the President's Message would come in. Sure enough, about one o'clock that night in it came ! The editor hurried it to the composing room, and sub-hoaded it, sheet by sheet, as it went \ out. Besult, the ' Herald ' had a page of the President's Message set, read, corrected, and in the form before two o'clock, while the other papare, not being prepared to handle It, coming unannounced as it did at so late an hour, could only u<B a few disconnected paragraphs from the important document. The 'Herald,' thanks to the editor in charge that night, scored a fine ! "beat"; but that Associated Press agent probably has congratulated himself for years at having partially defeated the machinations of an enterprising newspaper. The moral for managing editors in this Incident is not to believe all you hear or confess to all you do not know.