WAKING UP

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2789, 6 June 1916, Page 4

WAKING UP

Our readers will probably have noticed within a comparatively recent period a significant circumstance in connection with the public circulation of war news and opinions from the British point of view, bcaripg on official or semi-official imprimatur. From time to timo, American and other neutral journalists of recognised standing, have'been accorded interviews by British Ministers of State, a thing never heard of before the war, or, indeed, until very recently. It has been the custom for British Ministers and high officials to wrap about their official persons a cloak of impenetrable secrecy—or adamimt inaccessibility, which comes to the same thing—and the mere suggestion of a newspaper interview appalled them. But since the war broke out the Germans have been sedulously vitiating the atmosphere of r.fiutral countries—particularly America —with German "facts" and "opinions" calculated to impress mienlightened people, and so influence their minds against the cause of tho Allies. The German high-power wireless from Berlin to U.S.A., has been kept busy on this work, while bald, uninforming, and uninspiring communiques have been sparingly vouchsafed the American Press from tho British Press Bureau, very often ignoring points made by the German Press Agency, and so lotting our case go by default. This short-sighted aloofness has been heartily condemned by our friends in neutral countries, and only lately has the Ministerial ancl official mind taken cognisance of its fatuity and changed its view. We have a case in point in to-day's news relating to the naval battle. A party of journalists, representing the Associated Press of' America, has been able, under tho new order of things, to" go to the Admiralty, ask pointed questions, and receive perfectly candid replies. The Admiralty and other representative institutions of the British body politic have now realised that thoy can with perfect safety place thejr confidence in responsible journalists, leaving to their own judgment and method the task of spreading the truth. It is very cheering news from the point of v,iew of the Allies that the Admiralty has been able to give the journalists concerning tho recent naval battle. We had tho yesterday j now we are getting the other side of the story. German lies and omissions are being exposed and the great sea fight is being shown to tho world in its trno perspective. Instead of the victory claimed for the German Fleet it'has been dealt a shattering blow from which it will take some timo to recover. Four German capital ships were lost as compared with three British, and the tally of losses amongst the smaller craft also leaves tho enemy with a balance ■ on tho wrong side. It is great news and it- is probable that wh?n the full details arc available it will bo found that the Gorman losses have been even greater than now announced.