interview

A journalist’s long winding road

Photo by Paul Blandford

SEPTUAGENARIAN ANTON CASSAR DISCOVERED JOURNALISM ALMOST 40 YEARS AGO. TODAY, HE TALKS TO KURT SANSONE ABOUT THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS, THE PRESSURES JOURNALISTS ARE UNDER AND HOW THE GWU’S DAILY PAPER EVEN CAPTURED READERS FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE POLITICAL DIVIDE

It was a rejected offer by renowned Maltese journalist Harold Scorey that made the General Workers’ Union change its mind about publishing a daily English newspaper, back in 1962.

Union press veteran journalist Anton Cassar, who had joined the organisation in 1960, was entrusted by the then GWU secretary general, Joe Attard Kingswell, with contacting Mr Scorey.

With a sparkle of nostalgia in his eyes Mr Cassar recalls how the Maltese daily, ‘L-Orizzont’ was born.

"The GWU secretary general wanted to start publishing a daily English newspaper. At the time, the Labour Party was already publishing a daily Maltese paper and the GWU wanted to have something different. Kingswell told me to approach Harold Scorey to take charge of the paper, however Mr Scorey had already been earmarked for a post with the soon to be established Rediffusion Company," he says.

After the English language paper idea fell through Mr Cassar was given the task of preparing a detailed report studying the possibility of a daily Maltese language paper. The report was presented to the union administration, which gave the go-ahead for the new paper to be published.

Mr Cassar was the newspaper’s first editor in 1962, as he enthusiastically recalls, while his deputy was Paul Carachi. They were both experienced and had already worked together at The Times.

"We had purchased Duplex machines and they could give a touch of colour to the newspaper," he reminisces.

Mr Cassar explains how the pair employed six young reporters who were either school leavers or else who came straight off the work benches, one of whom was Charles Mizzi.
The beginning was tough but under Mr Cassar’s guidance the newspaper found its identity, going for an innovative and fresh approach, of human stories and investigative journalism.

But the path was not smooth; ‘L-Orizzont’ faced a negative reaction from Church quarters because it was considered to be similar to the Labour Party’s daily ‘Il-Helsien’ and the early sixties were characterised by the political-religious battle between the Labour Party and the Church.

"I had to break that comparison," Mr Cassar said. At one point a fervent Church organisation, the ‘Zghazagh Haddiema Nsara’ was going to hold its general conference, so when the editor got wind of the meeting, he decided to send a reporter and a photographer to cover the event.

"We were not invited, but I decided to send Charles Mizzi to report the conference," he explains. "I published the story and it was as if a miracle had happened. From that day on we started receiving news releases and press coverages from numerous Church groups. I managed to break the ice and in the process ‘L-Orizzont’ won the market over."

Mr Cassar faced stiff internal criticism for publishing Church related events and he was also accused of turning ‘L-Orizzont’ into the Church’s official organ, ‘Lehen is-Sewwa’. But he held fast and is still proud of his achievement.

Labour leader Dom Mintoff had also criticised the tactic adopted by the left-leaning paper. However, Mr Cassar still had his way.

"I rebutted Mintoff’s remarks because ‘L-Orizzont’ readers were being exposed to the Labour Party’s message as well. We had readers who would have never bought the MLP’s daily paper," Mr Cassar stresses.

Even though Mr Cassar relates the historical events with pride he is not the type to glorify everything that happened in days gone by.

But the blue-eyed veteran prides himself on the way the newspaper he marshalled managed to capture the Nationalist Party audience, which he believes was because of his policy to report facts faithfully irrespective of whoever organised the event.

"We used to report the Nationalist government’s activities even though we might have criticised certain aspects of the administration," he says. "Our editorial slant was evident but we respected facts. And we were also lucky because the Nationalist Party at the time did not have its own newspapers."

I asked him what he thought about the way journalism has changed.

"I would not say that we were better journalists in those times," he answers. "Nostalgia makes things looks nice. Malta has a deep rooted tradition in journalism and things change."

Highlighting some of the difficult times that Maltese journalists faced throughout the years, he points out that journalism in Malta has a history of suppression.

"Manwel Dimech, Herbert Ganado, Gerald Strickland, all faced the wrath of the colonial masters or the church because of newspapers they published," he says.

Mr Cassar recalls the time when Dr Joe Micallef Stafrace was found guilty of vilifying the governor by a cartoon.

"The colonial government closed down the union press," he says. At the time he worked at Allied Newspapers for ‘Il-Berqa’ and was also Vice Chairman of the Malta Branch of the Institute of Journalists.

Following the Micallef Stafrace incident the institute issued a memorandum in which it condemned the government’s right to close down a press or a newspaper.

"We described the practice as, ‘restrictive, repressive and outdated’," he recalls.

Eventually the colonial government amended the press law to preclude any future government from closing down newspapers.

Returning to the political-religious battle Mr Cassar recalls a particular incident.

"The Church had condemned the Labour Party executive and the MLP newspaper," he says. "The condemnation included those who bought the newspaper and the publishers. The union was not affected by the condemnation, however it was drawn into the issue because the Labour Party newspaper was printed at the union press."

Mr Cassar adds that the GWU met to decide on whether to continue publishing the Labour Party newspaper.

"It was a heated debate because there were the jobs of the union press workers at stake," he explains. "At the end, the decision was to continue with the printing of the MLP newspaper, however it was not a unanimous one."

Mr Cassar pauses for a moment. "With hindsight I think that the fact that the decision was not a unanimous one could have spurned Mintoff to create the Freedom Press. This is my interpretation, but Mintoff could have reasoned that there might come a time when the union would decide not to continue printing the MLP newspaper."

Times have rolled on since then. Today, we do not only have an array of newspapers but also a host of TV and radio stations. How does Mr Cassar view the contemporary media?
"The advent of pluralism is a feather in the Nationalist Party’s cap," he admits. "Media pluralism helped to reduce the polarisation that characterised Maltese politics."

The issue of media ownership by political parties raises its head. Mr Cassar admits he sees no harm in the practice.

"Journalists with the party media do have pressure from their respective parties, however pressure is to be found everywhere," he remarks.

He cites his work at The Times as an example.

"Directives from the management used to rain down cats and dogs on us," he says. "I remember one time Mabel Strickland told us to stop publishing Mintoff’s name in the posters because she realised that unknowingly The Times was building his popularity."

Mr Cassar believes that media directors have to choose an editor, give him all their trust and let him work with a free hand, while the editor must obviously have a loyalty towards the owners of the newspaper or the media organisation.

Mr Cassar believes that the media battle today is more of a commercial one rather than a political one. What about pressure put on advertisers by the political parties? His reply is immediate.

"I do not agree with that," he says.

Turning to the public broadcasting services, Mr Cassar is critical of the ‘notice board’ style news reporting.

"TVM does not do journalism it simply reports events, statements and counter replies," Mr Cassar says.

Suddenly, his face changes into a broad smile as he returns to the ever-popular topic of politics.

"In Malta we give too much importance to politics," he comments. "We have a passion for politics that goes overboard sometimes. However, we have to acknowledge that the big changes Malta has experienced over the years were a direct result of political decisions. I believe that this is the reason for our obsession with politics."

One of the biggest political decisions this country has to take in the coming years is membership of the European Union. Mr Cassar is strongly in Labour’s fold on this issue.
"I do not think that the EU is a valid option for the time being," he says. "Ever since Independence we have brought about changes and transformed this country on our own terms. We developed good relations with everybody. I don’t see why Malta cannot continue like this in the foreseeable future, especially considering the hard bargains that Mintoff brokered in the 1970s with a number of countries.
"I believe that Malta cannot cope with EU regulations. We should change things at our own pace like we have always done."