New York Press Condemns Nye’s Anti-jewish Insinuations

Condemnation of the anti-Jewish issue injected yesterday by Senator Gerald P. Nye at the opening in Washington of the inquiry into the radio and motion-picture industries, is expressed today in the New York press.

Under the title “Isolationist Boomerang” the New York Herald-Tribune points out editorially that Senator Wheeler, chairman of the Senate Interstate Commerce Committee had no authority whatsoever from his chamber to appoint the sub-committee which is now conducting the inquiry. The editorial praises Willkie’s bold pronouncement on behalf of the motion picture industry and its personnel that they “make no pretense of friendliness to Nazi Germany” and that they “abhor everything which Hitler represents.”

The N. Y. Post, in an editorial under the title “Senate Scandal” says: “We do not use this word in reference to Sen. Nye’s crudely anti-Semitic radio broadcast which immediately proceeded the introduction of the Clark motion. It is scandalous that the Senate majority has watched the subterfuge without protest.”

P. M., referring to Sen. Nye’s anti-Jewish allegations, points out that “the Nye-Clark attack is completely groundless. Actually, Hollywood is not run by foreign-born producers, but by some of our plushiest, all American banks, like the Chase National Bank, Atlas Corp., and the Rockefellers.”

The Daily News, in an editorial “What is Anti-Semitism” takes an ambiguous attitude. “We look for this investigation to churn up a good deal of talk about anti-Semitism and pro-Semitism in the United States,” the paper writes. “There has been a lot of hush-hush talk on this subject of late. Perhaps a little ventilation of the question will be good. People who are accused of anti-Semitism fall into two quite different categories: The first category is represented by the Ku Klux Klan and the Social Justice front. Such people believes that the Jews now in the United States should be harassed and restricted by illegal, or, if possible, legal, methods. The other category of those who are called anti-Semites by the more enthusiastic war-mongers are they who believe the United States should not send an army of millions of men-for hundreds of thousands would not be enough-to Europe to avenge upon Hitler the wrongs which he has inflicted on the Jews in Europe.”

Emphasizing that the Daily News employs “a considerable number of Jews, including some in key positions,” the editorial continues: “In the second category mentioned above, violent efforts are now being made to bang an anti-Semitic label on all who oppose sending millions of young Americans, Jews and Gentiles alike, overseas to settle another of Europe’s wars… It is not anti-Semitic to feel that Jews and Gentiles alike in this country should put this country’s interests first, and should not agitate for American entry into a war which is no business of ours. And which may ruin us all. We know a lot of Jews won’t agree with this, especially, perhaps, the older ones. But we think the best way to settle the Jewish problem in the United States, we’re not talking about Europe’s problems, is along the lines forecast by Israel Zangwill’s ‘Melting Pot’ and ‘Abie’s Irish Rose.'”

NYE “WARNS” JEWS NOT TO BECOME A “SCAPEGOAT”

Declaring that he wanted to meet “head-on” charges that anti-Semitic motives were behind the Washington investigation, Senator Nye said: “I have splendid Jewish friends in and out of the moving picture business. I dare to hope that I shall keep them as friends.” The Senator said, however, that future trouble might result from the wrath of a people trying to “find the scapegoat responsible for it all.” He said that if that hour came he and the committee members would battle race prejudice, and added: “My hope is that our Jewish people will so conduct themselves as to invite more of such spirit as ours.” Senator Nye at the same time asserted that primarily responsible for propaganda in the motion-picture field were “four names, each that of one of the Jewish faith, each one foreign born.”