HITLERISM.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 136, 10 June 1936, Page 10

HITLERISM.

DICTATORIAL BILL.

"GRAB GOVERNMENT."

MR. HAMILTON'S ONSLAUGHT. LIKE GERMANY AND ITALY. (By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday. Referring to the second reading speech of the Postmaster-General on the Broadcasting Bill, Mr. A. Hamilton (National, Wallace), former Postmaster-General, said Mr. Jones had said, "We are the people." "I would like to say that they are the representatives of a certain section of the' people and that the Opposition represents a very large class," said Mr. Hamilton. The Postmaster-General: I referred to the House. Mr. Hamilton said that the Minister had introduced the bill as though it was a very innocent measure, but it was a for-reaching bill. It was one of the most drastic and dictatorial bills that the Government had brought down this session. It was another step along the load to Hitleris.lll. Criticising the measure further, Mr. Hamilton said that the Minister would find it interesting when he got into the study of copyrights and patent rights. Tho Minister sjiid that the Government was going to control broadcasting, but the* listeners were the people who paid the piper and they were the people who should be considered. The Broadcasting Board had carried out its functions very well indeed. Commercial advertising was a difficult thing and any Government would find that out when they started playing about with commercial stations. The Australian Government and tho American people were in difficulties over it and he would advise the Government to consider very seriously before they opened up that avenue of revenue. If B stations were to be subsidised they would provide a future problem. "Making a Welter of It." Mr. Hamilton said he was glad to see that some parts of the old Act had been retained. Dealing with the Government's policy, ho said that it was a long road that had no turning and the present Government, in travelling down the road they were at present travelling, were "making a welter" of it. The present Government was making changes. Mr. D. W. Coleman (Government, Gisborne) : We were elected to do that. Mr. Hamilton: You may go out for tho same reason. Mr. Hamilton said that the Opposition was opposed to the political control of broadcasting and when the Minister had made his speech he had quoted 110 case of political control anywhere else in the world. Tho only places where there was political control was in Italy and Germany. Hitlerism and Mussolinism through political control of broadcasting would not be brought into New Zealand with the consent of the Opposition. Broadcasting was a national system today and it was wrong for party politics to enter into it.

A Government Member: "Why did you jam the Friendly Roarl ? Mr. Hamilton said that party politics would dictate what people were going to hoar and the homes were going to be invaded with a lot of political talk. A Minister was pomp: to run broadcasting in New Zealand and was going to be a dictator. "To Whip the Newspapers." Tho second part of the bill that the Opposition objected to, Mr. Hamilton said, was the commercial stations. The Government's 'intentions in this respect had the appearance of being a weapon with which to whip the newspapers into tune A.l If they did not report the Government in the style and manner in which the Government thought that they should be reported they would use broadcasting and he considered that such a. purpose w.ii very doubtful. Ho submitted that the present Government had been returned to power by the newspapers. (Government laughter,) The past Government. Mr. Hamilton said, had been hammered and hammered till a psychology had been crcated and the Labour party had been returned on an anti-Government wave created by the newspapers. The Minister of Education (Mr. Fraser): It waved to purpose. Mr. Hamilton said that the 8.8.C. system was l'ree from political and Ministerial control. Mr. Fraser: Is the lion, member serious in that statement? . Mr. Hamiltoji replied that ,the Ministerial control in' Britain only related to the veto of programmes. He said that as far as the New Zealand service was concerned, the financial aspect, was sound. The Government to-day was taking over an asset which was valued in January, 193G, at £230,000, and the liabilities were £41,000. The asset was practically worth £200,000. The business had been wonderfully well established, and he doubted whether the finances of the service would bo as safe in the hands of the Government. Mr. W. J. Broadfoot (National, Waitomo): No. Modelled on the 8.8.C. Dealing with conditions abroad, Mr. Hamilton said that the British people had objected to advertising, and Brittons had gone to the Continent to advertise for the benefit of British people. The Prime Minister might get up against that problem some day at an Empire Conference. There w»s no monopoly in Australia, -vhile in America broadcasting revenue was almost wholly from advertising. New Zealand had modelled its system on 8.8.C. methods, and it was a national system free from commercialism and private property. It gave a maximum amount of independence, and incidentally the chairman of the governors was paid £3000 a year. He believed that the system was the envy of the world. Under the system proposed by the Goverproeifit would be impossible to prevent propaganda.

"The Government can wel! be called a grab Government," said Mr. Hamilton. "They have grabbed the farmers' butter and cheese, and now they are grabbing broadcasting." Mr. Hamilton reiterated that the Government's intentions regarding commercial stations was the big stick to use on the newspapers, nnd the fact that the Government intended taking such powers indicated that they "had ' tho wind up." They had 55 members to tell their story, and what was more effective than speaking on a public platform. It was better than sitting behind a microphone. The Minister of Internal Affaire (Mr. Parry): We got here by doing that. Mr. Hamilton said that the Prime Minister could not make people listen. It was real Hitlerisni, and the next thing would be a Minister of Publicity" —a Doctor Goebbels.