Malcolm Ross

Malcolm Ross (13 July 1862 – 15 April 1930) was a New Zealand journalist, mountain climber, and a war correspondent during the First World War. Born in Otago, he was employed by the Otago Daily Times from 1882 until 1889, when he began working for the Union Steam Ship Company. He resumed his career as a fulltime journalist in 1897, relocating to Wellington to report on parliamentary matters. Following the outbreak of the First World War, he went to German Samoa to cover its seizure by the New Zealand Military Forces. He was selected as the official war correspondent for New Zealand, reporting on the exploits of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force at Gallipoli and in Europe. His dispatches were criticised for their boring style and lack of timeliness although the latter was mainly as a consequence of constraints placed on him by the New Zealand Government. After the war he resumed his career as a member of the press gallery covering parliament until his retirement in 1926.

Early life Malcolm Ross was born in Saddle Hill, in Otago, New Zealand on 13 July 1862, the first son of Alexander and Mary Ross, Scottish emigrants who had arrived in the country in the 1850s. Ross was educated at Palmerston School and then went onto the University of Otago. He was active in many sports, participating in cycling, golf, running and rowing; he also represented Otago in rugby union. However, in his spare time he freelanced for the ODT.

There was further controversy when the British War Office offered each of the Dominions of the British Empire the opportunity to designate a journalist as the official war correspondent for that country. For newspapers in New Zealand to send an independent journalist to provide coverage of the activities of the country's military forces was extremely expensive so they supported the initiative. Four newspaper editors drew up a shortlist of candidates from 47 applicants with Ross among them, one of four leading candidates. It took seven months for Ross to be confirmed in the role. Some believed that Massey, now prime minister, influenced the decision, although he later said he had recused himself from the discussions regarding Ross's appointment.