64t £i*4igan ~aitj Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of the author. This must be noted in all reprints. FRIDAY, JULY 7, 1972 News Phone: 764-0552 Hot air in Washington... ...Getting set for Miami High Court decision a setback to public THREE DAYS AGO, almost every newspaper in the country wrote some sort of editorial concerning freedom and independence in America. Those editorials spoke glowingly of our people's constitutionally-insured freedoms-of speech, of worship, and dissent. But there is one basic freedom which the editorial writers of America probably didn't mention-in fact, probably choked on if they thought of it at all. That quality, once cherished in this country, has been labeled "the public's right to know." This "right to know idea" has a partner-freedom of the press. For it is the press which informs the public, which brings to that public the knowledge to which they have a "right." Both these ideals have been dealt a severe blow by the recent Sunreme Court decision limiting a reporter's privilege to keep information sources confidential. THE PURT IC WILL be the loser in more ways than one. quent 5-4 decisions, ruled that requiring journalists to reveal sourges did not violate First Amendment guar- antees of freedoms of sneech and press. A strange ruling. Perhaps the freedom of the press is not explicitly violated, but that freedom is of dubious value to a renorter who can't get interviews with people involved in activities controversial enough to come be- fore a grand jury? The specific cases before the court involved two newspaper reporters and one television newsman. Two reported on the activities of the Black Panther Party, and one on the sale of hashish. Both subjects are of pub- lic interest, and both are tonics where those involved are apt to talk only if reporters can promise anonymity of source. That promise can no longer be made. As one of the reporters involved in the court case said: "If I now be- tray those who decided to trust me, reporters everywhere will find it difficult to deal with such informants. The ultimate loser will be the public." mTHE SUPREME COURT, in one of its increasingly fre- First, the public's right to know has been threatened by this restraint on the information-gathering abilities of the media. In an elouent dissenting opinion, Supreme Court Judge Potter Stewart wrote "The press has a preferred position in our constitutional scheme not to enable it to make money, not to set newsmen apart as a favored class, but to bring fulfillment to the public's right to know .. . (which is) . . crucial to the governing powers of the people." IN ADDITION, Stewart's dissenting opinion stated that the court has left the door open for state and federal governments "to undermine the historic independence of the press by attempting to annex the journalistic pro- fession as an investigative arm of government." This, he added, is an example of a growing govern- mental trend. "As the years pass the power of govern- ment becomes more and more pervasive. It is a power to suffocate both people and causes." Thus, the Court's ruling symbolizes a loss to the public greater, even, than the loss to the Fourth Estate. NO WONDER THE journalists . of America-and all friends of the Bill of Rights-may have choked this Independence Day as they sang "From every mountain- side, let freedom ring." -TAMMY JACOBS Today's staff . News: Loren Labardee, Carla Rapoport, Marilyn Riley. Editorial Page: Alan Lenhoff. Summer Staf EDITORIAL STAFF Dan Biddle, Jan Benedetti, Meryl Gordon, Jim Kentch, Loren Labardee, Alan Lenhoff (co-editor), Diane Levick, Chris Parks, Carle Rapoport (co-editor), Marilyn Riley, Gloria Smith, Paul Travis, Ralph Vartabedian. SPORTS STAFF Bob Andrews, Dan Borus, Elliot Legow. BUSINESS STAFF Andy Golding, .Business Mgr.; Sherry Kastle, Circulation Mgr.; Karen Laakko, Classified Mgr.; Bill Abbott, Display Mgr.; Diane Carnevale, Supplement Mgr.; Elliott Legow, Deborah Whiting, Carol Wieck, Assistants. PHOTOGRAPHY STAFF Denny Gainer, Rolfe Tessem, Gary Villani, Jim Wallace. By CHRIS PARKS Fdittor's Note: The following is an arraouat at ane day ef he arigs Sr. e hecrdentalsacomittee a the Democratic Party. The creden- tials committee serves as a micro- cosm of the convention and its pro- cedings thertefoe caattnrda seak previes'fawhat will happena inalaas. Washington D.C. June 29 A HEAVY PURPLE funk which hung like the Voice of Doom over the McGovern forces follow- ing the disappearing act of half their California delegates was lift- ed when the tables suddenly turn- ed and The Senator's reform- minded young followers knocked out kingpin Richard Daley and 58 other Chicago delegates. Although the gain delegate-wise of about 50 votes hardly makes up for the 151 from California lost Wednesday, the win provided some sorely needed adrenalin to a cam- paign that the day before seemed to have collapsed like a punctured balloon. It is 10 a m. Thursday morning and the Sheraton Park Hotel- site of the Credentials hearings- rises like the Castle Dracula out of the Washington landscape. Set on a hill, is a towering maze of corridors, dormers, towers and as- sorted examples of neo-Gothic architecture. The entrance is through a long tunnel lined with portholes. One gets the impression that the place was designed to withstand a seige. open election." To charges that party regulars openly pushed a slate of candidates which grossly underrepresented minorities he re- sponded, "I don't think it's fair to say that elected officials can't speak out to endorse candidates." SPEAKING FOR THE challen- gers is David Rosenstein from Chicago. He is a typical middle- aged, Jewish, ACLU, liberal Demo- cratic lawyer with All the Cre- dentials. His hair spills down around his collar. He wears stylish gold-rimmed glasses, and sports a very neatly (almost too neatly) fitting gray suit. As he mono- tones in a nasal voice, the cameras swing and focus. He is really leaning into the meat of his message. He has a "liberal solution" to the problem of resolving the challenge. Estab- lished proportional representation for the districts, he says. The idea is to pick out some of the over- thirty, male Muskie delegates and replace them with women, blacks and vaung people, presumably Looking out over the sea of faces, you see a meeting of the old Democratic Party and the New Democratic Party. The old liners are all there--liberal Jews, old blacks from the NAACP, and the ugly old ward healers and corrupt utnion officials. But a lot of them are new faces. Starry-eyed, liberal and idealistic, they are McGovern people in their first big run-in with big-time politics. RECESS--the delegates are all over the floor. Some just slump in their seats catching up onthe morning paper. Two old women McGovern: Pied Piper of youth more sympathetic to .Senator Mc- Govern. The lawyer's time is up and the echair* is throwing discussion open to the floor .Up rises Claude Hol- man-an Illinois delegate reputed to be Daley's major plant on the Credentials Committee. He's a loud little old man in a loud yellow jacket. He's blustering, red in the face. He talks a lot about party unity and how it's necessary to let the Illinois delegation avoid the reform rule in order to main- tain it. Otherwise, he warns, "You'll be handing it to Nixon on a silver platter in November." Daley: Trying to hang on from Oregon are chatting earnest- ly it a corner. Some are big shootet's. like Illinois' Roman Pucinski, who is buttonholing, backslapping, handshaking -- try- ing to drum up some deals. Most, however, are just plain bored, tired and they have their minds tmade up. There is more debate, resolu- tions and eventually, the vote- 70-65 in favor of accepting the challenge. It is a small victory for McGovern and the reformers, and a loss for Humphrey and the "stop McGovern" old liners who were gloating so unbearrably in all the Washington papers. It is now between sessions, and in the halls of the Sheraton Park, deals are being made and broken at full speed. A fierce-looking man --a delegate from Hawaii-is talk- ing to his pretty young daughter -also a delegate from Hawaii. Apparently she has been express- ing some independent ideas and he is visibly upset. In fact he's shouting. Humphrey: An old face Inside, the hotel's Sheraton Room is awash with color height- ened by blinding batteries of tele- vision lights. Almost everyone is wearing sunglasses to avoid the lights which, create an effect as though someone had taken Tiger Stadium and moved it indoors. Delegates squint and shield their eyes while the television cameras swing and focus. THE FIRST CHALLENGE of the day concerns delegates from the 17th, 19th, 22nd and 23rd Congressional districts in Illinois. The basis for the challenge is alleged underrepresentation of minorities and women. It is sort of the warm-up event for the main heavyweight headliners - Mayor Daley and his Chicago mob. The first speaker is Jerome Torshen-a big shot lawyer from Chicago and one of Daley's top henchmen. Replete in a greasy black suit, he strides up to the podium and grips it as if clinging to life itself. Strands of black hair straggle down the back of his head like clinging ivy. Like a cripple who has to make up for the loss of his hands he uses his feet to express emotion. His high-gloss patent leather shoes move back and forth as he speaks. And as he drones through a phrase his . right foot slides slowly back until it rests on his toe about two feet behind him. Describing how democratic and open the Illinois Democratic pri- nasry was, he ventures a few fur- tive hand gestures quickly return- ing his hands to the podium as if afraid he will lose his balance. "We don't have enough women (in the delegation), and I admit that. And there's not enough young people, and I admit that." But, he goes on, "There's no way to insure that voters will select a balanced group of delegates in an "God damn McGovern" the old man snarls. "He says he won't support the noninee. Hell then, he no Democrat. I'd just like to see him try to win the nOmination without the party organ- ization." The McGovern kids are grinning. They apparently think he can. A bright young McGovern wom- an f rota California takes the floor. She is just what you would expect a McGovern kid to look like- healthy, well-scrubbed, eager and super earnest. She is asking for a clarification of the specific rule involved in the impending challenge. That's a weakness of the McGovern people. They seem to believe in rules as something impartial used to de- termine right or wrong on a posi- tive scale. They fail to realize that all rules exist to be twisted by those with enough power to twist them. AFTER THE California chal- lenge, one would think they would have known. The debate creeps on. The out- raged challenged delegates are seeking to defend themselves. "The precinct committeemen are the very foundation of the party," one exclaims in exaspera- tion. "If I did something wrong by asking for their support (bang- bang, goes the chair, time's up)- I-1-1"' She looks kind of scared, "You have your principles and that's fine, but we made a deal. These are cold hard realities." Apparent- ly, the young woman wants to speak at the next session in favor of spine challenges which equal representation for women. Two heavies join her father in the assault, and she's just stand- ing there alone, biting the tip of her finger. "You're making deals with our enemies. You may go with them today, but they will leave you tomorrow." She's holding fast-not exactly what they might call "a together woman." When the challenge finally comes she will vote, with- out lifting her head, a quiet "no." IN THE MIDDLE of the after- noon there are more challenges over representation in Illinois. Challengers contend that the party regulars drew up slates of favored candidates and put the weight of the party machine behind their campaign. Very few women, blacks, Chicanos, or young people appeared on these slates. See LOTS, Page 8