Published June 1967 — Download PDF of the original newspaper column
From the Office of United States Senator Robert C. Byrd 105 Senate Office Building, Washington, D. C. 20510 Volume VII -- Number 26 June 30, 1967 Byrd's Eye View A Public Service Column by Senator Robert C. Byrd WHAT MAKES NEWS The United States, as a Nation with a press unmatched anywhere else in the world, has a good many capable persons constantly busy answering the big question, ''What's the news today?" And in providing the answer, a lot of assessing must be done to determine what makes news. To varying degrees, present day newspapers provide reports on foreign affairs, international events, actions by the Federal and State governments, expressions of editorial opinions, and assorted special items such as advice to the lovelorn. But most newspapers which stay in operation very long must provide a substantial quantity of local news. The average, very human, American newspaper reader wants to know all about what touches him in his immediate surroundings. This includes obituaries, wedding announcements, civic events, and a whole range of local happenings. Looking back over West Virginia newspapers published in past decades, one notes a fascinating range of topics as reflections of local interests. In the early 19th Century, West Virginia newspapers carried little advertising but were really strong on announcements. They announced the candidacies of local aspirants for public office. They announced the sale of private property. They announced rewards for runaway slaves, and a review of some of the amounts offered as rewards--one cent to three dollars--provides a real shock to persons accustomed, to current high cost-of-living prices. In the early half of the 19th Century, Mountain State news- papers frequently reflected strong local opinions against imbibing strong drink, by reporting fully and often temperance movements, meetings, and stories of dire happenings to drinking men. And it is noteworthy that this was nearly a century before enactment of prohibition in the U. S. Frequently, W. Va. newspapers reflected a high degree of religious activity in local areas, with some almost earning labels of "religious" papers through their faithful reporting of religious activities. One paper in 19th Century W. Va. became noted for its constant recital of news on sugar beet planting and the manufacture of silk, thus reflecting local efforts to build up these industries. One early 20th Century W. Va. newspaper became known for its repetitive headlining of news of poor mail delivery in the area, obviously reflecting the disgruntlement of local citizens with the Federal postal system. During the Civil War years, newspapers accounts of recruiting for military service on the local level, and reports of military achievements of the local soldier boys, proved that then, as now, it is the local hometown boy the homefolk want to know about. Modern changes in the newspaper trade still have not wrought much change in what the local citizens consider to be prime news-their communities, their neighbors, and themselves. -30-