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PRESS, BROADCASTING AND CINEMA

of the Government's aims and achievements. The department is linked by teleprinter to 65 newspapers, news agencies, broadcasting and television stations as well as City District Offices.

The department is organized in three Divisions-News, Publicity and Public Relations, with certain services common to all three. The News Division operates in two main sections-press and radio news. The press section channels information to newspapers and deals with press enquiries 24 hours a day while the radio news section specialises in the preparation of world and local news for the Colony's broadcasting stations and Rediffusion Television. Fifteen radio news bulletins in English and Chinese are prepared daily, ranging in length from full 10-minute bulletins to one-minute summaries. The radio news room moved to Broadcasting House on March 2, 1969 to be near its customers in 'Radio City' in Kowloon. It is in constant contact with the press section in Beaconsfield House, Hong Kong, through teleprinter, facsimile and telephone links.

To introduce the press section's facsimile service to Chinese newspapers, the machine was connected to the Sing Tao Pao in early October 1969 for a period of one month. The machine was then transferred to the Wah Kiu Po and the Kung Sheung Po respec- tively for the next two months. The exercise was being extended to the two television stations at the end of the year.

The special responsibilities of the recently formed Public Rela- tions Division are to maintain contact with Hong Kong people living overseas, especially those living in Britain, and at home to improve understanding between the public and the Government. This latter function involves keeping the Government informed of the current state of public opinion, explaining government activities and intentions to the people, and sorting out situations which may provide potential sources of misunderstanding. Much of this work is done through the news media, especially the Chinese language press. Continuous contact is also maintained with departments, such as the Resettlement Department and City District Offices, which are themselves in daily contact with large numbers of the public.

A special Chinese newspaper for Hong Kong residents abroad, Hong Kong News Digest, produced by the Public Relations Division, was enlarged and expanded in scope during the year. The division