Office of the Historian

104. Memorandum From the Director of the Psychological Strategy Board (Allen) to Board Members1

Washington, February 20, 1952.

SUBJECT

  • Procedure for Handling 10/5 Matters in PSB

I recommend that the following arrangements and procedures be formally approved by the Psychological Strategy Board in order that it may most effectively discharge its responsibilities under paragraph 3 of NSC 10/5:2

1.
A special panel will be created by PSB, the membership of which will consist of the same representatives of the Secretary of State and of the Secretary of Defense who now advise the Central Intelligence Agency’s Office of Policy Coordination pursuant to NSC 10/2, and the representative of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who acts in a similar capacity.3 The membership will also include a representative of the Central Intelligence Agency and two representatives of the Psychological Strategy Board, designated by the Director, Psychological Strategy Board, one of whom shall act as Chairman of the panel.
2.
This panel shall consider all programs and individual major projects within the scope of NSC 10/5 which are submitted to the panel for review by the Director of Central Intelligence.
3.
In the light of national policy and preliminary and tentative estimates of available resources, the panel will review the desirability of the programs and major projects which have been referred to it and reach agreement or disagreement as to recommendations for approval, modification, or disapproval.
4.
All of the following projects or programs will be referred by the panel to the Director of PSB for submission to the PSB:
(a)
Any program or “major” project on which the panel as a whole cannot reach unanimous agreement;
(b)
Any program or “major” project which in the opinion of any member of the panel raises a question of policy, desirability or feasibility of sufficient importance to warrant formal consideration by the PSB.
5.
Any program or “major” project on which the panel as a whole has reached unanimous agreement and which has not been referred to the Director of PSB for submission to the PSB under the provisions of paragraph 4 (b) above shall be handled as follows:
(a)
The representative of the Director of Central Intelligence on the panel shall present the program or project to the Director of Central Intelligence for his approval if not already formally recommended by him. If he approves, the Director of Central Intelligence shall sign and file with the Director of PSB a written statement approving such project or program and agreeing that the Central Intelligence Agency will provide such support as such project or program requires from the Central Intelligence Agency as evidenced by the requirements approved by the panel.
(b)
The representative of the Secretary of State on the panel shall present the program or project to the Under Secretary of State for his approval. If he approves, the Under Secretary of State shall sign and file with the Director of PSB a written statement approving such project or program from the standpoint of national policy and agreeing that the Department of State will provide such support as such project or program requires from the Department of State as evidenced by the requirements approved by the panel.
(c)
The representative of the Secretary of Defense on the panel shall present the program or project to the Deputy Secretary of Defense for his approval. If he approves, the Deputy Secretary of Defense shall sign and file with the Director of PSB a written statement approving such project or program from the standpoint of national policy and agreeing that the Department of Defense will provide such support as such project or program requires from the Department of Defense as evidenced by the requirements approved by the panel.
6.
Any program or project which has received the approval of the Director of Central Intelligence, the Under Secretary of State and the Deputy Secretary of Defense, under the provisions of paragraph 5, above, shall be deemed to have received the approval of the Psychological Strategy Board in accordance with the requirements of NSC 10/5.
7.
In the event that the Director of Central Intelligence, the Under Secretary of State or the Deputy Secretary of Defense shall report that his Department or Agency, respectively, is unwilling or unable to provide the approval and agreement set forth in paragraphs 5 (a), 5 (b), or 5 (c) above, the project or program in question shall be referred by the panel to the Director of the Psychological Strategy Board for submission to the Psychological Strategy Board for its further action.
8.
In the event that the Director of Central Intelligence, the Under Secretary of State, or the Deputy Secretary of Defense recommend any amendment, modification, or other changes to the program or project, the program or project, together with such recommendations, will be referred back to the panel for further action, under procedures identical to those applicable to the original submission of programs and projects to the panel.

RBA
  1. Source: National Archives, RG 59, S/S–NSC Files: Lot 62 D 333. Top Secret; Security Information. Forwarded to Under Secretary of State Webb under cover of a letter from Allen of the same date. The letter was returned to Allen with a note dated February 25. A handwritten notation on the letter indicates that it was approved by Webb. (Ibid.)↩
  2. Document 90. In a letter of March 14 Allen informed H. Freeman Matthews, Deputy Under Secretary of State, that he had received written approval from each member of the Board. Allen further stated that C. Tracy Barnes, his deputy, was being designated chairman of the special panel to be established under the approved procedure. (National Archives, RG 59, S/S Files: Lot 56 D 459, Secretary’s Letters, Defense 1952)↩
  3. For text of NSC 10/2, see Foreign Relations, 1945–1950, Emergence of the Intelligence Establishment, Document 292. The representatives were Robert P. Joyce (State), Brigadier General John Magruder (Defense), and Rear Admiral Leslie C. Stevens (JCS).↩