2 AUGUST 1975, Page 4

The Prentice affair

Sir: The most regretable part of the Prentice affair, was the attitude of the media towards the delegates to the General Management Committee by

dubious and devious means the names and addresses of these were obtained, and the persons concerned were systematically subjected to a campaign of harassment by media men.

Names, ages, addresses, occupations, employers, trade unions, marital status, etc., were all subjected to the glare of irresponsible and irrelevant publicity. One "class" paper even published the take home pay of one of the delegates! Titbits of gossip about.the aforementioned rang,ed from describing their wives, committing various criminal offences, indulging in conspiracies, intrigues and calamities, all were freely bandied about. In general it was an exhibition of media muck-raking at its Worst.

John Clements 48 Harvey Point, Fife Road, London, E16.