THE ADVERTISER AND THE PRESS
[To the Editor of THE SPECTATOR] SIR,—I fear a large section of your readers will be dis- appointed with Mr. F. P. Bishop's apologia for the admitted influence which the advertiser exercises in our present-day newspapers. This disappointment will be all the more because of the position which Mr. F. P. Bishop occupies in the news- paper world at the present time.
That there is danger to the independence of the Press both from inside and outside the profession is obvious. Perhaps there is none more insidious than that which is calculated to be exercised by commercial interests. I remember the late Lord Burnham, in proposing a toast at a dinner given to some of the new men who had come into Fleet Street from commerce, gave expression to the fears then entertained in many quarters about commercial men taking up newspaper enterprises and establishing public companies for the purpose. He spoke of it as a revolution, the ultimate results of which were not easy to forecast. Today they are obvious. The principal newspapers of the country are commercially organised and managed as investments just as grocers, drapers, provision shops, stores, &c.—profits being the prime consideration.
It is a well-known fact that all newspapers derive their profits from advertising—hence the uneasiness in the public mind about the future of our newspapers. The increasing cost of newspaper production will render the position more difficult. The reactions are obvious. The position of the editor is undermined--the views of the management being paramount. To what extent the controlling influence of the advertiser will be exercised is not easy to foresee. One thing is certain, namely, the activities of the advertiser will command editorial support for what it is worth.
Perhaps it is in connexion with financial publicity that the influence of the advertiser is most pernicious. The amount of criticism of financial propositions in the City articles of the Press today is negligible and, at best, merely colourless. Very few will agree with Mr. Bishop that whilst these and other objectionable features of modern newspaper production are true, and even though they detract from the dignity of the Press, it is not a serious danger to the public. Surely any loss of dignity on the part of the Press must detract from its vital functions. Nobody will object to independent sup- port of our commerce by the Press—in fact, it is part of its obvious duty, but the toadying to the advertiser which obtains is an unhealthy development. To independent observers it would seem that this pandering to the advertiser must in- crease rather than diminish. If newspaper companies cannot maintain their revenue their dividends must vanish, and with taem their influence and prestige.
We are drifting fast to a position where the interest of the newspaper proprietors and that of the public may come into serious conflict. It is a pity that with the insight which your correspondent has of the working of newspapers he has not seen fit to suggest some way of dealing with the crisis which is looming large on the horizon. Two things would seem to be necessary,—one is that the dividend on newspaper investments should be limited to a reasonable amount, say 5 per cent., and, secondly, that the independence of the editor should be restored once and for all. We may not produce editors like Delane, Buckle, Scott or Russell nowadays, but the race of editors capable of forming an independent judge- ment on the serious commercial, political and financial issues of our day is not extinct.
Your contributor's glorification of the advertiser would seem to be uncalled for. What is meant by " Above all, the advertiser represents for the editor his sole ultimate safeguard against influences of other kinds. Only where commercial advertising flourishes does there exist a Press free from Government control, or the secret dictation of parties or wealthy politicians "? Does this mean that newspapers can- not be published successfully unless they are subsidised either by Government, by party politicians, or the big advertisers? If not, it can only be a question of a little time before our Press descends to the level of that in the Fascist countries
today.—Yours faithfully, J. T. SEGRUE. 9 Queen Victoria Street, London, E.G. 4.
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