PUBLIC RELATIONS WORK BY LOCAL BODIES ADVOCATED

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 November 1950, Page 4

PUBLIC RELATIONS WORK BY LOCAL BODIES ADVOCATED

For democratic local government to develop in New Zealand, to b? efficient and to be successful, popular understanding of its machinery and popular interest in its activities was necessary, Mr D. F. Gienny, city accountant told members of the Rotary Club yesterday. Hence, a public relations organisation was needed to interpret local government to the people, he said. Although local bodies served an sections of the community day and night—throughout their lifetime —tew people in the larger towns even really knew the men whom they had chosen to represent them on local bodies, Mr Gienny stated. Too large a percentage of the electorate did not even exercise the privilege to vote, the response to a loan poll often being less than 20 per cent of the ratepayers.

“Probably the cause of this apathy arises from several sources. In part it results from the modern tendency to vote not a man but for the party which he represents, irrespective of its choice of nominees,” Mr Gienny stated. “In part it results from the complexity of our modern day interests, and in part it results from the lack of means by which the local authorities themselves can take any positive steps to attract and simulate the interest of the citizen in their work and to bring him into more active co-operation with them. Insisting that democratic local government could only be fully effective when it represented a partnership between the citizen, the elected representative and the local government officer, Mr Gienny said the remedy to public apathy was the adoption by local bodies of an active and long-term policy of public relations. Such a policy should be carried out first in the schools, where the interest in citizenship should first be taught. Films, film-strips, pictorial books, wall-posters and other visual aids could be used for this training in citizenship. Lectures on local government would also help. For youths and adults the service could be carried on by addresses to the various organisations which cater for these sections of the community. Training for community service could also be introduced into the curricula of the organisations. In England, said Mr Gienny, much work was being done through citizens' forums, discussion groups and brains trusts. The Press was also important as a means of contact between the local authority and the community it served, he stated. “Those who serve in local government service here in New Zealand have little or no reason to complain in regard to the assistance given to their work by the Press. For the most part the newspapers are willing to use all the local material that can be given to them. Where the Press received co-operation from the local body and its officials, it was always prepared to co-operate with them in turn.

“It is essential to the health of democratic local government that its affairs should be conducted, as far as public interest permits, with the fullest possible publicity, and that local authorities should give every facility to the Press to report and comment on their proceedings, and that, on the other hand, the Press should treat local government in a reasonable spirit, clearly, truthfully, objectively and critically,” he stated. Civic bulletins, containing notes from council minutes, articles on civic services, “who’s who” on the council, local histories, reading lists from the public library, quizzes on local affairs, cartoons and photographs, should be used to supplement Press publicity, he considered.

With the exception of the larger New Zealand cities, there would be little scope for a full-time public relations officer, Mr Gienny stated. He put forward the suggestion that an officer from the town clerk’s office should carry out the duties of parttime public relations officer, working on a policy laid down by a small subcommittee of the council.

Wherever possible, however, all municipalities should join in co-ordin-ated activity through the municipal association, he thought.