The Press: litters in the Press

The urge to get the news first works like sandpaper on the nerve ends of the press. The tendency of big news to be bad news conditions the newsman to look for the clouds behind the silver handout. The two characteristics often produce a healthy combination of alertness and skepticism.

But there are times when the nerve ends rub raw to the point of jitters, and the newsman's skeptical eye overlooks the good news for the bad, and for the big headlines the bad brings.

Russia's Sputniks have produced one of those times, as was evidenced last week by an attack of jumpiness-to-conclusions that hit two U.S. wire services, and by a statesman's post-mortem on Western reporting of last month's NATO conference.