Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961–1963, Volume XXV, Organization of Foreign Policy; Information Policy; United Nations; Scientific Matters

121. Memorandum From the Director of the U.S. Information Agency (Murrow) to U.S. Information Agency Staff¹

Washington, April 22, 1961.

If USIA is to have maximum effectiveness as the psychological instrument of U.S. foreign policy, our media output must be more responsive to policy direction and emphasis, and faster and more flexible than heretofore. This requires the closest coordination of all media efforts. I have asked IOP to undertake this responsibility and have appointed Mr. Edgar D. Brooke, a senior Career Foreign Service Officer, as Director of Media Content. He reports directly to the Deputy Director of Policy and Plans.

Specifically, our purposes are:

1. To define the themes which media should convey and the subjects they should cover in their world-wide output, and to establish priorities among them.

2. To synthesize Area requirements for media output to best meet overall field needs.

3. To organize detailed programming of media efforts on behalf of priority themes to assure desired emphasis and appropriate division of responsibility.

4. To assure policy control of media output through continuing review.

Procedures:

1. Themes and Subjects

a. IOP, in consultation with the Areas, shall develop a definitive list of themes to be conveyed and subjects to be covered in world-wide output, and shall recommend to the Director which themes and subjects should be given priority.

b. IOP, working with the Areas and IRI, shall keep abreast of U.S. policy developments, field needs, and attitudes of key audiences, and shall revise the Agency’s themes, subjects and priorities accordingly.

c. IOP shall provide the media with these approved lists of priority themes and subjects, and policy guidance on their handling.

2. Planning and Programming

a. The media shall periodically provide IOP with their plans for production and acquisition of major items for world-wide use. (“Major items” shall be defined by IOP in consultation with the media.) IOP shall continuously review these plans to assure conformity with current national policy and Agency priorities.

b. IOP shall organize joint planning by the media to assure that world-wide output supports priority themes and that there is appropriate division of responsibility among the media for each theme.

3. Policy Control

a. In production of major items, the media shall provide drafts, scripts, or rough-cuts to IOP for policy review in time to permit changes if necessary.

b. IOP shall spot-check other output to assure conformity with policy.

4. Applicability

a. These procedures shall apply primarily to media output intended for more than one Area. Present procedures for servicing individual posts and for guidance covering output for a single geographic area are not altered by this memorandum.

b. The present fast news guidance procedures are not altered by this memorandum.

There is no intention to interpose a barrier between media chiefs and my deputies and myself. Rather, we seek to insure that all media are used with maximum effectiveness and that they are consistently and immediately responsive to policy decisions by the Government and program decisions of this Agency.

In this effort I ask your unstinting cooperation.

Edward R. Murrow

1. Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Departments and Agencies Series, USIA, Box 290. No classification marking. Two copies of this memorandum were provided to McGeorge Bundy under cover of a memorandum from Frederic Bundy of USIA, April 27. (Ibid.)