Lbp.ARY Flivlslo'n"" FEB 25 1955 J.R FIL~ .I)Py; ~ SB RBT(;'!: ~
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· I,,,, ,.,.l 84th CongreS8, 1st Session House Doeument No. 87 TENTH SEMIANNUAL REPORT OF UNITED STATES .ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INFORMATION LETTER FMM CHAIRMAN, UNITED STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INFORMATION TRANSMITI'ING THE TENTH SEMIANNUAL REPORT OF THE UNITED STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INFORMATION, DATED FEBRUARY 1955, PURSUANT TO SECTION 603 OF PUBLIC LAW 402, SOTH CONGRESS ~ ..... t\tHM.n~'.L V I" "l lBP.ARY flIVlSlo'N"" FEB 25 1955 J.R FIL~ .I)py; ~ SB RBT(;'!: ~ F'EBRU..o.R¥ la, 1955.-Referred to the Committee on Foreign AfFairs and ordered to be printed UNrn;D STATES GOVERNMENT PRWTlNO OFFICE ."" WASlDNGTON : 1955 LEITER OF TRANSMITTAL TOE UNITED STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INFORMATION, UNITED STATES INFORMATION AGENCY, OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN, Wa8hington, D. C., February 10, 1955. IT:h;eJ.~~t~~I;~~~~~~~:~j~;:a·::khiec~e::'''~'~th copy of the Tenth Semi- ~, Advisory Commission on Informa. , . report is required by section 603 of MARK A. MAY, Chairman, united Statu Advisory Oommission on Information. (Enclosure: Tenth Semiannual Report of the U. S. Advisory Com mission on Information.) LETTER OF SUBMITTAL To the Oongre8s oj the United States: Public Law 402, approved by the 80th Congress on January 27, 1948, created the United States Advisory Commission on Information and assigned it lhe responsibility of suggesting policies for and appraising the Government's international information activities. Under Re organization Plan No.8 all of these activities have been combined since August 1, 1953, in the United States Information Agency (USIA). Prior to that date these activities were conducted by the Department of State, the Mutual Security Agency t (MSA) and the Technical Cooperation Administration (TeA). The Commission represents the public interest and members are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. The five members represent a cross section of professional and busi ness experience in the commurucations field. They serve without pay. Chairman is Dr. Mark A. May, director, Institute of Human Rela tions, Yale University, New Haven, Conn. Members are Erwin D. Canham, editor, Christian Science MonitorI.!lostoa; Sigurd S. Larmon, president, Young &: Rubicam, Inc., New lork; Judge Justin Miller, retired chairman of the Board, National Association of Radio and Tele-vision Broadca.sters Los .Angeles; and Philip D. Reed, chairman of the board, General E lectric Co., New York. Since its ninth semiannual report to the Co~ess carll' in 1954, three members of the Commission have visited Umted. States Informa tion Service (USIS) posts in Europe and the Near East. The Com mission has maintained regular contact with the Director of the USIA and his staff in Washington. Directives have been studied and the output of the Agency sampled. From this study and observation the Commission is convinced the USIA made progress in 1954, the first fuB calendar ye9.r of its existence. The transfer of tbe International Broadcasting Service, popularly known as the "Voice of America," from New York to more adequate quarters in Washi..ngton has made for both economy and efficiency. In making this and other changes in its radio operations and in expanding into television in It number of countries, the Agency has benefited from the counsel of its Broadcast Advisory COIIlDllttee composed of 11 of the foremost execut.ives of the industry. In the important field of books Rnd periodicals, the Agency has made use of the Committee on Books Abroad, another advisory com mittee composed of 4 weD-known publishing execut.ives and the directors of 2 large university libraries. L Now Fo~1p opn-atJons Admb:lstraUon ( FO .~ . v VI LETTER OF SUBMITI'AL The Commission is pleased with the progress the Agency as a whole has made in increasing it.s efficiency. We are convinced that it is now concentrating its efforts and resources toward cRlTying out the President.'s directive that it inform the peoples of other nations- that the objectives and polieie~ of the UniTed States are In harmony with and will ad"ance their legitimate aspirations for freedom, progress, and peace. :From first,..hand observations overseas t.he Commission is confident morale of field staffs is higher t-han in some years. Executive cbanges have been so frequent tbat this is less true in Washington. However, the Director and his Deputy have served continuously and efficiently (or the past year and a half, since reorganization of the Agency. In the Commission's previous report., we recommended t,hat liaison between the USIA and Government departments be improved by the President designa.ting the Director of the Agency a member of tbe Opera.tions Coordinating Board, which coordinates t,he actions on policies developed by the Nahonal Security Council. We understand that this proposal is under favorable consideration ill the c.:'l:ccut·ive branch. We urge that action on this recommendation be completed as soon as possible. While USIA activities have been strengthened, a few minutes with a radio receiver a visit to a fair or to a bookstore in any of many countries, including some in the Western Hemisphere, supplies ample evidence that our adversaries have increased their act,jvities even more in this vitallong·term struggle for men's minds. If America's aims are to be explained adequately abroad now and in the difficult future, the USIA must be more effective. One need, we believe, is for the overhauling of the internal personnel op{'.ration to permit better recruitment of qualified_p_ersonnel to meet definite needs. , The problem in this area is acute. Ultimately, we would like to see the Agency so well staffed that it would never be necessary to send an information officer abroad without his having both a knowledge of the language and the culture of the country of assignment. It should be kept in mind tha.t theJ·ob of the USIA is long term. Our overseas information program is r ativeJy new and the Commis sion is fully cognizant or the fact that many mistakes have been mado. We believe, however, that the organization created in 1953 is an iml2rovement over the previous organizations charged with this respon sibility and that it is now time to give it st.ability in both staff and fun?s. Only.with these will it be able to plan and function with opttmUDl effiCIency. It has been necessary during the past year to place great emphasis on facilities but we believe more time and effort must be placed on policies and programs. The United States cannot afford to be indifferent to what other governments and people think of us and believe about us. Neither can we afford to ignore what our enemies are telling other :peoples and their governments about us. While Communist military mIght is at prescnt behind Communist borders, its propaganda. is worldwide and clearly is designed to undermine and divide the moral strength or the free world. As the Commission has emphasized in previous reports, the major task of the USIA is to promote the unity of the free world by accurately LE'ITER OF SUBMITTAL m presenting American policies and aims abroad and to combat Com munist efforts to discredit these. Specific recommendations of the Commission for making the USIA stronger and more effective are in section 1. This is followed by a report of Chairman Mark A. May of his survey of USIA activities in Europe and the Middle East. Some of the recommendations have been made in earlier reports. Some can be carried out by the USIA but most call for action by the Congress. We bespeak your thought ful consideration of them. Respectfully submitted. MARK A. MAY, Chairman. ERWIN D. CANHAM. SIGURD S. LARMON. JUSTIN MILLER. PHILIP D. REED . • CONTENTS P", l .... tt.. rof trll.nsmittaL**_ •• _. _ ...• • • • ___ ____ . _______ ____ TIl J.ettNu( snbmittaL . _ ___ _ ___ . __ _ __ ___ . _ • __ . ___ ______ __ . _ • •• v l. Recommendations ••• ______ ___ ____ __ ____ ___ __ __ _____ . ____ 1 II. Chairman May's !!l1 rH'Y of field olwmtiOIlS__ •• ____ _____ ___ • __ •• _ _ 3 III. Apllendix ___ _______ ___ __ _____ _________ _.. ____ . ____ ____ 1 • '" B. Doe. 87, 8~1-_' TENTH SEMIANNUAL REPORT OF UNITED STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INFORMATION I. THE COMMISSION RECO:'fMENDS 1. That the 84th Congress appropriate sub8tantially tk sum ($88,500,000) requested by thi USIA for it.~ work in flu, 1956 fiscal year as included in the President' 8 Budget f,o Congres8 Ir:Tbe Commission recommends further t.hat a small part of this be held by the Agency 88 an emergency fund for the meeting of unforeseen sit·natlons as they occur. The total is an increase of $11,386,000 over the $77,114,000 appropriated for 1955 but is roughly the amount spent by the Government on these activities in 1954 and is considera· hly less than the record $150,460,716 spent in 1952.1 In view of the continuing world crisis, we believe tbe lOcrcase necessary. As the Congress is well informed on the world situation and the USIA will presen t a detailed 1956 budget, the Commission believes it unnecessary to eillborate on this recommendation except to empha size the extent and ma."onitude o{ the Communist propaganda effort. There nre indications today that tbe Communists are stepping up {urther their propaganda campaign. With the softening of their attitude in other directions, they seem to be wheeling up the big guns in the ideological field. This is a situation that cannot be ignored. The Commission is well aware that more than money is required in this struggle. But additional funds definitely will enable the USIA better to compete with our enemies over tbe world in radio facilities, films, pamphlets, magazines, and books.