DELAY WITH NEWS
LOSS OF THE LANCASTRIA
OFFICIALDOM CRITICISED
LONDON, July 29. J j The "Daily Mail," in a leading article, I ; says that the official delay in releas- - ing the news of the loss of the liner I Lancastria by German bombing has badly affected public opinion. "It; seems an outstanding example of the stupidity of some official mind," adds the paper. "The Lancastria was sunk on June 17. Within a few days of the disaster hundreds of thousands of ' British people knew it was true because they heard stories from the survivors. The losses were exaggerated as the tale spread, but it was hot till July 24 that the news was first published in New York, after which the Ministry of Information permitted British newspapers to circulate the news they had known for five weeks. "The service departments are doubtless primarily responsible for the delay, but it is the business of the Ministry of Information to urge in the national interests the earliest release of good or bad news. The Ministry essays many roles, sometimes that of a 'nosey Parker,' sometimes a benevolent uncle, and sometimes a schoolmaster, but rarely is it the source of worthwhile information."
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19400730.2.30
Bibliographic details
Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 26, 30 July 1940, Page 5
Word Count
199DELAY WITH NEWS Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 26, 30 July 1940, Page 5
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Evening Post. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Log in