'Exaggerated'

Rabaul Riots 'Exaggerated'

The facts used in this report of the Rabaul riots are from a Rabaul corres pondent, Gus Smales. Smales, an experienced journalist with the reputa tion of a careful and factual re porter, is also a correspondent for some Australian newspapers, a number of whom combined his accounts of the riot with highly coloured and exaggerated reports they received from other sources. In some cases Smales’ by-line was used on material not emanating from him and this has seriously embarrassed him in Rabaul.

Speaking by radio telephone in early August, Smales said; “Many towns people are annoyed at wild Australian Press accounts claiming hundreds injured, and I don’t blame them. The Chamber of Commerce has discussed the exaggerated stories”.