Information? Once 'twas oddly lacking (4)
I believe the answer is:
news
'information?' is the definition.
(news is a kind of information)
'once 'twas oddly lacking' is the wordplay.
'oddly lacking' indicates alternate letters.
'once'+'twas'='oncetwas'
The alternating letters of 'oncetwas' are 'NEWS'.
(Other definitions for news that I've seen before include "Topical information" , "Contents of bulletin" , "Four points" , "Sewn (anag.)" , "Latest developments" .)