The journalists’ strike

Press, 21 October 1978, Page 9

The journalists’ strike

Sir, — For the past week you have protested against the restrictions placed upon you by the Journalists' Union but have continued obediently accepting them. Over the years international journalism has trumpeted forth the sacred tenets of freedom of the press and ‘the public needs to know;” yet here the Newspaper Publishers’ Association appears to knuckle down impotently in the face of an internal threat. Presumably the great concern is that resistance would engender union solidarity, the bringing of more muscle to bear. But a cool appraisal should show that, if the country’s newspapers were similarly united in their stand, the penalties of such escalation would be acceptable. The world’s newspapers have triumphed over greater adversity than this. If you and your fellow newspapers were to publish and be damned in your best traditions, your image would be much enhanced over that presented by a policy of feeble protestation.— Yours, etc., G. C. HUBBARD. October 18, 1978. (The survival rate of newspapers elsewhere does not set us encouraging examples. Given the support of readers and staff, we intend to do better. — Editor)