PRESS CRITICISM OF ALL BLACKS

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 287, 4 September 1928, Page 3

PRESS CRITICISM OF ALL BLACKS

Mr. T. A. Fletcher, a member of the Management Committee of the New Zealand Rugby Union, who has just returned from a visit to Napier, writes:— "My attention has been drawn _ to. a Press Association message from Napier in which there are a number of inaccuracies. In the course of my remarks I made no suggestion whatever that Press Association reports from South Africa should have been censored by the manager. When the question was raised I pointed out that the New Zealand Rugby Union had afforded every facility to the Press Association in sending their own representative, but. that we could not exercise any supervision oyer what he cabled to New Zealand.. Such a principle would be wrong, as it was restricting the freedom of the Press. In fairness to the New Zealand Press Association representative I pointed out that the criticism of Brownlie had. not emanated from him, but from a private letter received in Auckland, and that no exception could be taken to any of his reports. The members of the Hawkes Bay Rugby Union agreed that we could not. claim the power of supervising 1 ress Association reports. They naturally felt that an injustice hud been done to Brownlie bv an anonymous criticism behind his back while be was not here to defend himself, and they felt he should have an. opportunity of vindicating his actions If the publicity given has the effect of putting a stop to many of the alarmist rumours that have been circulated. recently it will certainly be a blessing to everybody concerned.”