NEWSPAPERS AND WARS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19825, 30 December 1938, Page 8

NEWSPAPERS AND WARS

ANSWER TO “SNEERS” PATRIOTIC MOTIVES A sharp corrective to the suggestion that newspapers profit from public anxiety during periods of war or when war is threatened was given by Mr. R. E. Denison, president of the Australian Newspapers’ Association at a recent conference. Newspapers, he said, were true to their traditions of service in times of national tension and in giving service were involved in greatly increased costs. "It may be appropriate for me,” said Mr. Denison, “to refer to a cheap sneer which is often directed at the press by uninformed members of the public, and occasionally, I regret to say, of political circles —this being to the effect that ‘newspapers want war to increase their profits.’

"No more maliciously false statement could possibly be made. Without exception, the newspapers of Australia are actuated by the highest of patriotic motives; without regard to the cost, their ideal is, and lias always been, to present to their readers the news and all the news. "So far from making profits out of war or out of an international crisis, I will venture to say that there is not one single city newspaper in Australia, which has not, in the past tew .weeks, expended far more in the way of increased cable costs, salaries and overtime to members of its staff, and a thousand and one other expenses which go towards the production of a newspaper than ii. can ever hope to regain by way of increased sales. During the crisis just passed the newspapers were true to their trust. 1 need say no more,

"Those, of you who were associated with newspapers during the World War of 1914-18 will readily recall the difficulties with which all were faced at that time, and even after the cessation of hostilities, in obtaining supplies of that essenial raw material for our publications—newsprint. Even those who had been prudent enough t-o accumulate newsprint stocks against such an emergency, were deprived of those Stocks by Government action, and were subjected to severe rationing, resulting in the reduction of newspapers to the smallest possible format and the consequent restriction of news to the reading public.

“Although I am aware that we are not all of us completely in agreement as to die basis on which a local newsprint industry should be started, we must all agree on the importance of such an industry to Australia as a whole, and on the vital necessity of making our country self-supporting and independent of overseas supplies in time of crisis.