Other formats

    Adobe Portable Document Format file (facsimile images)   TEI XML file   ePub eBook file  

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 36, Number 7. 11th April 1973

Neutral Heading

Neutral Heading

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you this letter to condemn your childish somewhat cowardly habit of writing 'brilliant and witty' comments under Letters to the Editor. Unless a letter contains statements which are factually wrong the Editor should not attack the individual's ideas or ideology. Many justified attacks on the newspaper monopolies of New Zealand have been launched by Salient. Yet the main argument against newspaper monopolies is that they suppress freedom of speech; and yet by cowardly attacks on the views of contributors you stifle the freedom of expression that you supposedly support. By following this crude form of thought control you only succeed in convicing Salient readers that you are doing exactly what the Do and other monopolistic 'thought barons' do; that is Salient all contributions to the newspaper to favour Your ideas and opinions. Surely this newspaper could lead the way to True freedom of expression by allowing people to express their opinions and letting Salient readers decide for themselves on the value of the opinions expressed.

Yours etc., K.S. Allan.

[In our last issue we added comments to three letters. One to amplify, another to answer a question, and the third to point out that the letter was abridged. At least we print our letters intact or acknowledge abridgement: K.S. Allan evidently doesn't know that the dailies abridge letters to alter their meaning, and often they simply decline to print letters. Some of our letters cry out for replies that apathetic students wilt never give. If K.S. Allan expects us to write letters to ourselves to reply, then he or she is indeed the wanker that his/her letter suggests. We do admit that students could have made up their own minds that K.S, Allan's letter is tinyminded and sanctimonious, but occasionally we can't resist giving the knife another twist.—Eds