Dean of Agriculture Talks to College Editors, 1924

By C. Larsen, Dean of Agriculture, South Dakota State College; The A.C.E., American Association of Agricultural College Editors, October 1924

Since the agricultural depression fell upon this country four years ago this summer, the entire nation has come to recognize that the farmers’ problems were real and not artificial. There has grown up in the city a very wholesome respect for the true condition of agriculture and every one has come to fully realize that urban prosperity on a substantial basis depends largely upon agricultural prosperity. We not only make this statement but we believe it.

Although there has been this general recognition of the true plight of the American farmer, I cannot help but feel that there will always be a conflict between city and the country as there naturally is between producer and consumer, not only of agricultural products but of all products. Therefore, I say advisedly and without elaboration that one of the newer and chief functions of the press service is to sell agriculture, not to farmers but to the consumer.

We have made substantial progress along this line during the past year, due largely to the eagerness which commercial, financial, and the general magazines have sought stories on agriculture. As I stated before a great deal of time has been spent by Press Service writers during the past year in making special contact sand we expect to continue this line of effort in the future. One writer, for instance, has averaged more than one column a week in the Wall Street Journal. Another person has spent considerable time in writing special articles on agricultural economics  for general magazines, and at least 90 per cent of my time is taken up in direct contact with newspaper correspondents and special writers.