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368. The second comment has relation to the fact that up to the present, as deposed to by Mr. Clegg, the secretary of the Dominion Sportsmen's Association, the Broadcasting Service has obtained its racing information as to winners and placed horses at race meetings held at points distant from the broadcasting centre from that association—that is, from an association of men engaged in an illegal occupation. Without embarking upon any condemnatory comment, we can only say that in our view the propriety of such a proceeding is open to grave question, SECTION 4.—NEWSPAPER SPACE DEVOTED TO RACING 369. The amount of newspaper space devoted to racing news and the striking form in which it is now generally presented was made the subject of adverse comment by counsel for the associated Churches. It is probable that no more space is devoted to racing news now than was devoted to it in the years which preceded the last war. One wellknown metropolitan newspaper, for instance, was shown to have devoted 8,057 in, to the topic during the first three months of 1939 and only 5,872 in. during the same period in 1947. This newspaper, in common with others, was however, larger in 1939 than in 1947, and the discrepancy in terms of space may not be as great comparatively as the figures suggest. 370. However that may be, it seems certain that, in the aggregate the newspapers are not devoting more space to racing affairs now than they did before the war. The difference lies in the method of presentation. The format now generally adopted is more striking and, in particular instances, more flamboyant. The difference is most emphasized in those newspapers which print banner headlines and widely spaced schedules giving the names of horses selected by the sporting writers of various prominent newspapers as likely to win or gain places in specific races. The present form of presentation has some tendency to operate as a stimulus to betting. Some analysis of the effects of that tendency is involved in consequence. It is not likely to influence habitual bettors, for they are normally too firmly assured of the soundness of their own opinions to be affected as to either the nature or extent of their betting by newspaper view. Nor is it likely to affect those who are disinterested in racing. The former class will bet and will bet to the same extent, almost irrespective of what the papers say ; the latter will not bet under any circumstances. . 371. Any influence the newspapers may have in the encouragement of betting is probably, therefore, confined to those who are already interested in racing and bet occasionally. That any great number of this class are encouraged to bet or to bet. more heavily by any concurrence of opinion amongst sporting writers or by the opinions of any