19 JULY 1946, Page 4

A SPECTATOR'S NOTEBOOK

T N view of the stir caused by Mr. Morrison's completely uncalled-

for for injection of the question of an inquiry on the state of the Press into a discussion on an inquiry on broadcasting policy, it is as well to note precisely what the President of the Council said. His words were : All great channels for the dissemination of information to the public would, the Government believe, benefit from having their state of health examined by an independent inquiry from time to time, and we do not exclude the Press from that consideration.

Mr. Morrison added in reply to a question that he was giving expression to a Government policy, but not to a Government decision. What this means can only be conjectured. So far as the National Union of Journalists is behind the demand tabulated by back-benchers in the House of Commons for this kind of inquiry, it would seem to be rather unnecessarily advertising its own deficiencies for to seek Government assistance in a matter in which journalists might be supposed to be capable of looking after their own interests is a patent confession of weakness. As to Mr. Morrison, his words undeniably have a sinister aspect. Labour as such has little enough reason to fear what it calls the capitalist Press, the extent of whose influence over the electors was plainly enough demonstrated a year ago. But some Ministers—certainly not all, or the most sensible— take personal criticism, particularly criticism in print, badly, and the idea of putting " newspaper lords " under cross-examination would be highly congenial to them. Interference with the Press has always been the first weapon of totalitarians everywhere—and incipient totalitarianism here is no imaginary danger.