"Rumour Control 'provides editorial and consultancy services to media and defence industry clients as well as independent analysis of key defence capability development and acquisition issues.

It was set up by Gregor Ferguson, former editor and now Editor at Large of Australian Defence Magazine, Australia's leading monthly defence and industry title, which is published by Yaffa Publishing Group, Sydney. View Gregor Ferguson's CV here.

Rumour Control is an outlet for Gregor’s analytical skills and his ability to identify, absorb, integrate and fuse information from a variety of sources into a single coherent whole – an article, a briefing paper or a market survey.

Gregor is currently undertaking a Ph.D at Adelaide University, studying the factors which enable or prevent the successful commercialisation of defence-related Intellectual Property in Australia. This is therefore an area of growing expertise to which he adds his wide knowledge of defence acquisition, defence R&D and defence industry in Australia.

“Why did I choose this name? It's a hangover from my earlier life as a reservist in the British Army. Any headquarters is supposed to be able to tell you what's going on and what will happen next. In practice, as most old soldiers will acknowledge, this isn't always the case - in fact, you can sometimes safely ignore whatever your superiors tell you. For that reason almost every headquarters organisation, from rifle company to Cabinet Office, ends up at some point being referred to despairingly by its subordinates as 'Rumour Control'. Having served as a platoon rifleman, in a battalion headquarters, and for 25 years as a journalist I can vouch for the felicity of the expression. And it applies equally well in the corporate world as well...

“The title 'Rumour Control' is my affectionate, tongue-in-cheek tribute to both the defence community and my colleagues in the media.

“Don't hesitate to send in requests or suggestions for enhancing the value or functionality of the site. 'Rumour Control' is young and growing and open to comment and constructive criticism.”

GREG FERGUSON