CENSORSHIP OF NEWS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 32, 17 November 1939, Page 5

CENSORSHIP OF NEWS.

THE GREAT VALUE OF SECRECY. OPERATIONS OF THE NAVY. LONDON, November 15. The public is coming to realise that the strict and possibly irksome censorship of naval news is not imposed without good reason. A report of quite innocent events may convey valuable information to the enemy. For instance, although the fishing fleets are carrying out usual operations;, and plentiful supplies of fish are being landed, no mention of their exploits will*—bo found in the newspapers.

•Fish are found on certain grounds at certain seasons, and if particulars of .ports, number of vessels or even catches were published, the enemy from this information, could discover which ground was being used and it would .he profitable to subject it to a quick raid. By reason of might of the Allied Navies, German sea activities are .almost confined to submarine, operations. It is of the greatest importance to keep the German Admiralty as blindfolded as possible, because, for instance, one of the main causes of the collapse of the German submarine campaign in the last war was . the breakdown of the morale of U-boat crews. - - " •

This was largely attributable to the censorship., as .a result of which tho Germans were seldom able to find out how, when, and where the U-boats were destroyed. Tlie Germans only knew that tho submarines had left their bases and that many; never returned. -—The-—successes against U-boats - are therefore not announced. These craft operate according to a pre-arranged plan. When an announcement of the destruction of a U-boat is made, giving the position’or any other clue, the gap in the scheme would at once be filled by another submarine—or, if others had disappeared in the same locality, a safer beat might be" selected next time. i f . New?,, of the capture’ or sinking ot tankers or other supply ships is also withheld. It is easy to imagine tho consternation of a U-boat or a "surface raider short of fuel and 1000 miles from home, when the supply ships fails to arrive at the appointed rendezvous. The release of such a story might well prevent a U-boat or raider eventually being caught at the same rendezvous per haps.

Reports of gunfire or explosions' oft the coasts are usually censored. These often indicate apti-submarine operations. The Admiralty’s communiques are necessarily brief, being designed to tell the enemy no more than they saw for themselves.

The operations over, and the ships back in harbouj, fuller press accounts may be released, and British losses are always announced. It should be realised that wireless silence when at sea is imperative, or the enemy will learn where ships are. The names of officers are omitted from accounts of naval operations,' as their inclusion would enable the enemy to learn the disposition of forces from prewar Navy lists giving the names of officers in each British ship. Warships look much alike from tho air, and naval actions are fought at ranges that make identification of individual ships impossible. Neither is the name of the commander of a merchant ship which may have distinguished herself released. Many will remember that Captain Frvatt, of the s.s. Brussels, was marked down and eventually murdered by tho Germans in the late war. In certain cases, even knowledge of what naval news is withheld may be of use to the enemy. British Official Wireless. - ~ ■ • - .