Crime publicity.—Sensational news was featured in each of the papers, especially cases in which whites and Negroes were involved. The intention appeared to be to present the Negro's side of the story. A measurement of news interest on different types of crime articles is possible in Table XXXV with space in inches.
| Negro Newspapers | Crimes Involving Only Negroes | Crimes Involving Negro v.White | Crimes Involving Whites v. Negroes | Crimes Involving Only Whites | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of Articles | Space | No. of Articles | Space | No. of Articles | Space | No. of Articles | Space | |
| Defender | 233 | 1,032 | 90 | 467 | 55 | 260 | 4 | 31 |
| Whip | 75 | 495 | 70 | 440 | 44 | 350 | 8 | 44 |
| Searchlight | 26 | 121 | 37 | 440 | 11 | 67 | 1 | 2 |
The method of presentation of articles revealed the strongest characteristic of Negro journalism. In this connection a random selection of headlines is interesting:
CRIMES INVOLVING WHITE ASSAILANTS AND NEGRO VICTIMS
"Free White Woman Who Killed Attorney"
"Threatens Mother and Babes with Axe"
"Bowman Milk Driver Brutally Assaults Woman"
"Crime of Postmaster Starts Serious Trouble"
"Commits Suicide to Escape Mob"
"Baby Girl Assaulted by White Farm Hand"