The Sun SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1916. SCREAM OF THE "YELLOW PRESS."

Sun (Christchurch), Volume III, Issue 866, 18 November 1916, Page 8

The Sun SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1916. SCREAM OF THE "YELLOW PRESS."

When the British censor, after i considerable provocation, shut down ; on the International News Service, the property of W. R. Hearst, the notorious pro-German American newspaper proprietor, it was not to he expected that the originator of the "Yellow Press" would take his punishment in silence. He didn't. The reply consisted of a full page ; editorial sprinkled with misstateI meats, vituperation, and threats ! of defiance, in the best Hearst ; manner. The editorial hands 'were held up in holy horror |at the suggestion that the Hearst publications would garble or falsify news of the war in favour of Germany and against Britain. It was hinted very plainly in the article that the neutral Press of the States was only neutral because it was paid with British gold for that purpose, the inference being that the Hearst papers alone were pure, and truthful, and altogether honest in the matter of war news. The International News Service "would not prostitute its functions to this shameful secret service" (of publishing what the British censor directed should be published). It would defy the British Government first. The London representative of the I.N.S. pleaded with Mr Hearst himself to guarantee that there would be "no garbling by anyone, under pain of dismissal, and (he publication of all dispatches exactly as received " an appeal which let the cat out of the bag thoroughly. The great man, however, declared he would retract nothing, apologise for nothing, and change nothing to suit the British censor. He admitted that there were "a couple of items" of doubtful origin, but they were "so trivial as to prove the general charges absurd and insincere." The hysteria, vituperation, and vulgar allegations in the editorial article showed clearly that the Hearst combination had been hit in a soft spot. With a very few exceptions, it received no sympathy from the newspaper Press of the Stales,and though Hie "Examiner" (a Hearst publication) published a number of letters breathing the Hearst spirit, most of them looked uncommonly like "fakes." One was signed by a writer with a German name. This gentleman in all seriousness declared that the fulminations of the British Press agents in Australia had driven half the population into the asylums! In reply to another correspondent who expressed his contempt of the Hearst altitude in very explicit terms, and suggested that some day the English lion might bring down his paw on the American Eagle, the "Examiner" leader writer declared that "if it ever does come to war—we will know how to take care of ourselves. .... there is no European combination which we cannot, in a war of defence, finally beat to its knees." This from a Press which is ever insulting Japan in order to keep American preparedness up to the mark, is very rich. However, there are no signs that W. R. Hearst has yet overawed cither Britain or the British censor. The Social-Democratic Parly is distributing a peace manifesto about Christchurch. It is a dingy little document signed by the president and the secretary-treasurer of the organisation, and published from that shrine of patriotism, the "Maoriland Worker" ollice. There is nothing in the ollicial portion of Hie manifesto I to move an intelligent, healthy mind to anything but gentle irony. It is amusing in its terrible seriousness and pitiable in its futility. It is as though the fire-eating anti-militarist j president of the S.I).P. mounted, the 'Alps to shout down a hurricane or I defy an avalanche. But the absurd i little document contains an appeal to 'the "working class of New Zealand to enter on a definite campaign for 'Peace against Militarism,'' and as its ', circulation appears to have been timed to coincide with flic introduction of the ballot for recruits, it calls for the attention of the authorities. To our mind the manifesto provides the Government with an opportunity to come down with a heavy hand on peace propagandists, and cranks of thai kind.