Other formats

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

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

Salient. An Organ of Student Opinion at Victoria College, Wellington, N.Z. Vol. 1, No. 21 October 5, 1938

The Press and Impartiality

The Press and Impartiality

Mr. W. J. Scott, lecturer in English at Training College, has recently conducted an investigation into the amount of space given by the "Evening Post" to speeches of Government and Nationalist representatives. Reports of Parliamentary debates were not included in the inquiry, which covered only the election campaign, thus making the numbers of speakers taking part almost equal. No letters in the correspondence columns were counted.

Mr. Scott found that between 22nd. August and 20th September the amount of space gives Government speakers totalled 1,726[unclear: ¾] inches. The Nationalist Party speakers were given 3,114[unclear: ¼] inches.

During this period Mr. Savage was given 140 inches (excluding statements on the international situation). Mr. Hamilton was given 208 inches.

The space given to the speeches of candidates in the Wellington electorates is also interesting. Covering the same period of time, the average number of inches per issue in which they have been reported is as follows:—
Wellington Central:
Hon. P. Fraser 17 inches.
Mr. Will Appleton (Nationalist) 20.6 inches.
Wellington Easte:
Hon. R. Semple 13 inches.
Mr. W. L. Darker (Nationalist) 17.7 inches.
Wellington Suburbs:
Mr. H. E. Combs (Labour) 13.8 inches.
Mr. O. C. Mazengarb (Nationalist) 17.3 inches.

(Mr. Mazengarb's average, if his speeches outside his own electorate are included, is 24.2 inches per issue.)

Wellington South:
Mr. Howlett (Nationalist) 14.5 inches.
Mr. McKeen (Labour) 13.1 inches.
Wellington North:
Mrs. Knox Gilmer (Political species uncertain) 18.2 inches.
Mr. C. H. Chapman (Labour) 14.5 inches.
Wellington West:
Mr. R. A. Wright (See Mrs. Knox Glimer) 10.2 inches.
Mrs. Stewart (Labour) 14.7 inches.

Up to the 29th September, Mrs. Stewart had been reported only three times against Mr. Wright's eight times, and the total space given her was 44.25 inches compared with Mr. Wright 81.5 inches.

The accuracy of these figures is vouched for. You can draw your own conclusions.