question, but more in the nature of a statement, an effort to sum up a portion of your testimony.
Do you or da you not believe that the people of character nnd a sense of social responsibility, a sense of awareness of (heir obligutions to the communities and to our country, have some sense of guilt about some of these publications?
Mr. Davis. Yes, sir.
Senator Hennines. As to their character and the nature of them?
Mr. Davis. Yes, sir.
Senator Henninas. With relation to what they may be doing ta the minds of the children ?
Mr, Davis. Well, Lam not qualified about the minds of the children, but I do say in my opinion—and that is all I can talk about—I think some of them are overboard; yes, sir. I certainly don’t want to leave wny impression, the only thing I said—I may have confused you slightly by making this statement—that quite often committees will go around to a newsstand and make a wholesale slaughter of maga- zines, taking a lot of gaod ones along with a few of the bad apples.
I say this whole barre! of apples is not rotten. There are a few in there. We must admit that. And anyone who tries to defend things like that is next te crazy, and he is out for something besides helping America.
We can’t say that the entire industry is rotten due to those few. i think the pressure should be put on them, If we are off base in our own shop, I can assure you one thing, that I can put our people back on hase, our publishers. Jf they are out of line I can put them back. Don’t worry about that.
Senator Hennines. You have been doing it and intend to continue to do it?
My. Davis. I have not been too active in the last 3 months, sir. I have been in the hospital and 1 have been at home with my eye con- dition here.
The Chairman. But your purpose is to help the industry clean house within?
Myx. Dayts. Yes, sir; and I will say this, that no dealer nor any wholesaler in America has to take anything the Kable News Co. dis- tributes if they don’t want it. Nobody uses any pressure or any force or nothing, and they can send it hack express collect if they gel it and find ont that the local community don’t need it, or they themselves consider it bad taste.
So our position is just that. There are no arguments whatsoever,
The Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Davis, for your forthright testimony.
Mr. Davis. Thank vou, sir.
The Chairman. That concludes the witnesses for this morning's hearing.
The subcommittee will now stand in recess until two-thirty this afternoon.
(Thereupon, at 12:30 p. m., the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 2:30 p. m., same day.)
