may cause them much suffering. But besides any effect it may have on particular individuals, this embroidering of the truth with fictitious fancies, even when it does not deceive the reader in the least, tends to form in the reporter the habit of embellishing all his stories with imaginary details. Thus it becomes the first step in so-called "faking."
Newspaper "faking" often appeals to the young reporter as clever and commendable, particularly when he hears older newspaper men tell stories of successful "fakes." The "cub" may even hear his humorous little feature story praised for its cleverness by his superiors who know that it is largely imaginary. If he does not stop to consider, he may consciously or unconsciously decide that fiction makes better news than truth, and may proceed to write his stories accordingly. Encouraged by some other newspaper man's account of a similar exploit, he "fakes" an interview when he fails to get one that has been assigned to him. His "fake" interview may deceive the city editor, and when printed may not be repudiated by the man falsely quoted. Although apparently a success from the reporter's point of view, the "fake" story injures him more than he realizes, for it dulls his moral sense, makes less keen his appreciation of the difference between truth and falsehood. If his superiors discover the deception, they lose confidence in his reliability and may discharge him at once. If his identity is known to the victim of the "fake," the reporter loses that man's respect and often makes him an enemy, from whom he cannot hope to secure news in the future. In fact, "faking" is another term for "lying" and the reporter guilty of it deserves to be called by the "short and ugly word."
Furthermore, every "fake," whether it deceives few or many, lowers both the newspaper that publishes it
