PARLIAMENT AND RADIO.
QN Wednesday of last week listeners were accorded, for the first time in New Zealand history, the privilege of hearing over the air the Governor-General’s Speech on the occasion. of the opening of Parliament, within an hour of its being delivered to the assembled legislators. While on this occasion the speech was merely read to listeners from the studio-this being made possible by the courtesy .of the Prime Minister, the Hon. G. W. Forbes-the time will doubtless comewhen the microphone itself will be permitted at the opening of Parliament, and listeners be enabled to follow the voice of the Governor"General for the time being as he delivers his inaugural message to Parliament. That practice has not yet been introduced in the British. -House of Commons, and that precedent probably governs the New Zealand situation. However, a start has been made in improving the intimacy of contact between Parliament and the people, and doubtless the microphone will come in the future into greater possibilities of service. HE proposal has sometimes been made that the more important debates of Parliament should be broadcast. This suggestion has some little merit, but we are inclined to think the demerits outweigh the advantages. To many people it would be interesting to follow the course of a Parliamentary debate, but that degree of interést is not, we think, sufficiently widespread to make the service popular either as an entertainment or as a method of instruction. A few years ago one of the Austrian Parliaments decided to permit its debates to be broadcast. Legislators, knowing that they were "on the air" and that, among others, their constituents would be listening, set themselves to make a good impression. Some could not restrain their verbosity. They proceeded to talk, and showed signs of running to inordinate length. This continued till some of their constituents got on the telephone and passed the blunt suggestion back to the House and the member concerned that he was "talking too much." The promptitude with which members sat down after this expression of view from their constituents was amusing, and led to an abrupt termination of the practice: of broadcasting debates. The time factor and the lack of
universal appeal, therefore, we think weigh against any proposal o Parliament itself being broadcast in so far as.its debates are concerned. The picturesque cefemony of an Opening might possibly be achieved in the future, but scarcely.more. _ THERE is, however, one phase in which radio might, we think, be allowed to serve Parliament and the people. Listeners, particularly in such strenuous economic times as are now prevailing, do desire to be fully informed of the views of the principal political parties. Further, it is important that they should be so informed, and tf possible achieve at first hand an impression of the calibre and views of the parties soliciting their suffrages. To achieve this end, the suggestion has been made that the leaders of each political party should ‘be given the opportunity of attending at. 2YA and delivering a direct exposition on constructive lines of their policies. These statements of their policy should, as.far as possible, be nom-controversial in so far as direct criticism of other policies is concerned. They should in the main be’ confined to a direct statement of the constructive courses of actior which constitute the main planks of the party concerned. The Briti Broadcasting Corporation has permitted action along these lines. Rué&o in Britain has been made the medium on a number of occasions. for direct explanations to the British electors of party policies. Further, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer has used radio for a concise explanation of the main points of his Budget. In the past New Zealand has been careful to preserve the air from controversial politics. We think, however, that in the national interest the time has come when a considered experiment might be made of allowing the principals of each party to address the electors over the air. Pierre ite iia iit imei Tite ttt sssurrndnessasesapesamesannace
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Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 36, 20 March 1931, Page 6
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671PARLIAMENT AND RADIO. Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 36, 20 March 1931, Page 6
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