Wairarapa Times-Age TUESDAY, JANUARY 9, 1940. NEWS FROM THE FRONT.

Wairarapa Times-Age, 9 January 1940, Page 4

Wairarapa Times-Age TUESDAY, JANUARY 9, 1940. NEWS FROM THE FRONT.

AN announcement from Melbourne that the Australian Broadcasting Commission plans to send a mobile unit with the Second A.I.F. “to broadcast war news from the battlefield, may be expected to prompt an immediate and vigorous demand that parallel action shall be taken by this country. Some recent expenditure on broadcasting development in the Dominion nota.blv the. proposed outlay on a new commercial station in Auckland —has been criticised hotly, but. the whole country will applaud any reasonable expenditure needed to ensure the transmission of constant and dependable news of the fortunes of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in the theatre or theatres of war in which it may be destined to operate.

’ Apart from the fact. that, the Australian unit is to consist ol; three broadcasters and two technicians, little has been made known about the conditions in which it is to carry out its duties. Evidently, however, it will have, to obtain the use, during suitable periods, of a transmitting station or stations overseas. No difficult questions of censorship need arise. The people of the Dominions will not expect to be admitted into secrets of military action or policy, but they will expect to be informed promptly of how the members of then- forces are faring. No doubt there will be occasions during the months to come when kinsfolk and others in these oversea countries will be comforted even by the “no news that is good news ” provided they are informed explicitly and on dependable authority that “there is nothing of importance to report.’’

The organisation of what may be called a domestic service of news by wireless from the Expeditionary Force should be taken in hand by the Government without, delay. There are, of course, some necessary reservations to be made. No news will be expected, for example, of the sea-passage of our troops, because it is a condition of the safety.of the members of the Expeditionary Force that, these movements should be shrouded to the greatest, extent, possible in secrecy. But once our forces have reached given training areas or war theatres, arrangements most, certainly should be made for the transmission of regular and reasonably particularised news bulletins.