Speaker Cut Off When Politics Mentioned

Radio Record, Volume VIII, Issue 42, 26 April 1935, Page 50

Speaker Cut Off When Politics Mentioned

To the Editor Sir.-On a recent Sunday evening Iy was listening to 4ZM, Dunedin, and on two occasions the speaker was deliberately cut off the air. I have not seen the inci- ‘ dent mentioned in the "Radio Record," j though the circumstances ‘are rather strange. I did not get the speaker’s \ name, but he was addressing a packed house in the Dunedin Town Hall. Something about a Radio church wag mention-

ed, and the speaker was advocating the cause of old unfortunate people, and was appealing for sections to build homes for them at a cost of £400 each. He turned , to politics and was instantly cut off, for some time this continued, then he came back on the air, and later he attacked Mr. Forbes and Mr. Coates for spending such large sums of money going Home, when he was cut off for the second time. The peculiar thing is that the relay was arranged by 4ZM and yet that studio cut him off. Mr. Walls, of 4ZM, was in the hall and also spoke later, but no reference was made to cutting the principal speaker off the air. Why did 4ZM cut off their own speaker? Surely there is no harm in referring to politics or questioning the useless spending of money by Mr. Forbes and Mr. Coates. If 4ZM was afraid of ,/ the authorities then there is something the i matter with broadcasting in New Zea-

land:

SANS SOUCE

Te Anvamutu.