DOMINION PRESS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18770, 29 July 1935, Page 6

DOMINION PRESS

A LIBERAL SERVICE CATERING FOR PUBLIC “In comparison with other countries the newspaper service in New Zealand appears to be liberal, as there are 54 daily newspapers, or one. for every 28,000 persons,” said Mr J. M. Hardcastle, manager of Wilson and Horton, Limited, in an address to members of the Auckland chapter of the New Zealand Institute of Secretaries at Auckland.

In Canada, the proportion of newspapers to population was one to 110,000 people, in Australia one to 140,000 and in the United Kingdom one to 280,000, Mr liardcastle said. The hign proportion in New Zealand was duo to several factors. The Dominion’s population was well educated and widely distributed, and until recently transport facilities wore not sufficiently developed to enable a few newspapers to cater for the. whole community. By means of co-operative organisation, newspapers in all parts of the country were able to- supply a very good service of news to their readers, but the tendency to extensive circulation was developing. Figures supplied by the Dir-ector-General of the Post and Telegraph Department recently showed that ’A) years ago there were 63 daily newspapers registered in New Zealand, .whereas registered to-day there were 54, a comparison that indicated , a severe mortality. The number of bi-weekly and triweekly papers bad declined from 57 to 44, and of weekly newspapers from 70 to 69. In the last figure were no doubt mauy new publications, published in support of'some special cause or interest, and not newspapers in the usual sense.

“One may predict," he said, “that in the next 20 years, the conduct of all the newspaper press-of New Zealand will bo characterised by the same high qualities as it reveals to-day, a constant endeavour to. furnish to its readers a prompt, complete, accurate and dignified sprvice of news from all parts of the world ; a steadfast determination to deserve the confidence of its readers by using its powers fairly and honorably; and equally persistent efforts to prove, by daily' demonstration, its value >atid its economy as the most effective institution to circulate the news of the day, to inform and lead public opinion, to foster commerce and industry and to furnish that check upon government which is probably its most useful and important function.”