141. Memorandum From the Special Assistant to the President for Media and Public Affairs (Jagoda) to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski)1
SUBJECT
- NSC’s role in International Communications and Culture
A range of issues in international communications and cultural policy will be increasingly prominent over the next months. In particular, a potentially volatile UNESCO meeting scheduled for October and November bears careful monitoring by the White House.
As you know, there has been no comprehensive coordination by the NSC of communications policy and cultural affairs in the international [Page 405] arena. I would like to undertake, on a short-term basis, a review of these issues so that you might suggest more effective ways for the President to provide guidance to the bureaucracy. These matters are nominally handled by State and ICA, although the FCC, Commerce, the Cultural Endowments, and others have rapidly expanding involvement. Several Congressional committees have interests and concerns.
Briefly, here are the three main substantive areas:
1. The role of the United States in communicating its culture, ideas, and policy to others. ICA is beginning its newly mandated approach to “public diplomacy,” a result of last year’s reorganization. Frequently, Presidential policy could be more effectively implemented if there were a closer relationship between the White House and ICA. Questions of policy arise and guidance would be helpful and appreciated.
2. The appetite of other countries for bringing their culture and policy to our people. Increasingly, other governments (and their non-governmental institutions, including scholars, journalists, artists, cultural leaders, etc.) want to beam cultural and political product and policy toward our people. What should be our reaction? And what might be the role of the government in the decision-making process of our private sector?
3. Conflict among the West, the Marxists, and the LDC’s about the free flow of ideas and information. The Marxists and many one-party developing states have posed a considerable challenge to our approach to the free flow of information and culture. They want to mandate “state” responsibility for communications and ideas that are transmitted from within a nation. Our institutions are seriously concerned and are looking to the government for help and direction. A major fight over these problems will emerge at the previously mentioned late fall meeting of UNESCO, for which our government is currently unprepared. Obviously, at the heart of all this conflict is the question of human rights.
My main interest, on your behalf, would be to determine how international communications and cultural matters can be better intertwined with the main thrust of our foreign policy. Jody Powell strongly supports this proposal and I would expect that the President would have no objection if the idea had your recommendation.
May we explore this idea further at your earliest convenience?
- Source: Carter Library, Donated Historical Material, Barry Jagoda, Box 3, NSC. No classification marking. There is no indication that Brzezinski saw the memorandum.↩