Press Censorship
Sir, —Your leader this morning claims the right of newspapers to publish material without having to state its origin. Governments can hardly be criticised for making it an offence to print “any report”—in this case about South African prisons—“knowing it to be false or without taking reasonable steps to verify it." In dealing with so powerful an influence on public opinion as the press it would be less than a Government's duty to do otherwise. If prison warders, or anyone else, makes false statements they should be open to penalties and it ill becomes the press to champion their anonymity. To talk about this being “the last straw” towards “destroying almost the last vestige of newspaper freedom” is exaggeration, if not hysteria. By all means support protection from victimisation of informants speaking the truth, but it is strange morality to oppose legislation aimed at suppressing false and anonymous witnesses.— Yours, etc., J. RICHARD DAWSON. August 15, 1967.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19670816.2.146.15
Bibliographic details
Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31449, 16 August 1967, Page 16
Word Count
159Press Censorship Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31449, 16 August 1967, Page 16
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