CENSORSHIP FINE

Grey River Argus, 16 December 1943, Page 6

CENSORSHIP FINE

AUCKLAND, Dec. 15.

A fine of £2O was imposed on Robert Brown Bell, editor and man-aging-director of the “New Zealand Observer,’’ by the Magistrate (Mr. Luxford), in giving judgment to-day in the prosecution brought for a breach of censorship and publicity emergency regulations. Two prosecutions were brought against Bell, but one charge was withdrawn by leave of the Court. They were based on certain words appearing in “The Observer,” relating to a proposed flight bv a Royhl Air Force member.

The Magistrate said that anyone reading the published words would be informed that a specified journey by a certain type of aircraft in the near future was under consideration by a competent authority. This amounted to information within the meaning of the regulations. In considering the penalty, the Magistrate said he took into account, the fact that defendant made an honest attempt to make innocuous the matter he caused to be published, and thought he had succeeded, but Mr. Luxford added that editors in publishing information of a military nature were treading on very thin ice and ran a risk whenever they did so. Having regard to all the circumstances. he did not propose to impose the maximum penaltv, but the penalty must be substantial. SYDNEY. Dee. 15.

"The Australian Government’s view which is shared bv the Cnm-mander-in-Chiof (General MacArthur) is that newsnaners should he fr Pf > tn treat all accounts of war as their judgment regards as n roper. the onlv stipulation hemo- there s b all not he to the enemy information wh>ch would he of ‘ use to him.” ’ Th’s statement in the limitations of the war has been mode b->>- Mr. Curtin.

Mr. Kennedy, commenting on the Prime Minister’s statement said that

Australian newspapers were glad to accept Mr. Curtin’s exposition of the limitations of the censorship. In the function of that service, however, the” press sometimes clashed with... varying .views of -censors, who apparently were "not required to'conform with the opinion of the Australian Government. ,?