The daily monitor. (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1940-1942, 1942-03-09
By PETER EDISON
Dolly Monitor Washington
Correspondent

WASHINGTON, March g.
II the whole truth about gov
ernmentoI censorship p o icy
we're known, it would probably
reveal q running bottle be-
tween the War and Navy De-
portments and the non-mili-
tory bronches Of the govern
ment over what and Row much
news to give out.
1t is only natural that the
point of view Of the armed
services be slonted toward op-
plying q lot of hush-hush on
everything. eport ment Of
Stote probably shares that dis
tinction.
The other civilian bronches
of the government go on the
theory thot the American peo-
pie ore entitled to know what
their government is doing and
that everything possible should
be told, up to the point Of not
revealing militory secrets.
To over simplify, the rule of
thumbs for the armed services
might be interpreted os Don't
fell onvthino which the enennv
may not Know" The word
"moy" is important. II there is
any doubt about the enemy's
having any given morseI Of in
formation, the policy is to oP-
ply the shush.
From the standpoint Of stro-
teey, thot's q good rule. The
harder you make it for an en-
erny oeent to do his job, the
softer you ore. An Axis agent
may have all the information
he's otter on any subject-soy
plane producton-except one
little detail. Supply him with
thot detail or make it easy for
him to get it and his job is
done. Hence the tendency to
lean over backward in keeping
secret even the smallest pro-
duction figures.
Reconciling the points Of
view Of the military and nav
al branches Of the government,
which is to cover up and con-
ceol news, and the civilian
branches Of the government,
which like to tell what they're
doing, is one Of the tougher
problems which the Office Of
Censorship has to fooe. Not
all the headaches Of censori
ship come in deoline with the
public, the press and the ro-
do. Just as big q pain is the
problem Of dealing with gov
eminent agencies in deter
mining which Of their wortine
activities ore censorobIe and to
what degree.
The policy in this war, as
you know, is not to have one
central know-oII and telllittle
agency like the CreeI Commit
tee Of the lost war. Instead,
every government agency hos
its own service Of information
and it tells what it thinks
should be told, subject only to
q general supervision policy
worked out by an lnterdeport-
mental Committee on War In
formation, on which are rep
resentotives of Is federal de-
portments.
Officially, the armed seN-
ices do not criticize or Ques-
ton this procedure, which is
on administration policy thot
can be troced right back to the
White House where sits the
commander in chief Of the
Army and Navy. Privately,
however, there are plenty OF
officers who think this policy
leads to Is different kinds OF
confusion.
If this scribbline kibitzer in
terprets this criticism correctly,
it boiIs down to q belief that
there is too much civilian 3D.
vice and too much meddIing
of non military government
agencies in matters thot ore in
final analysis the concern OF
the fiehtin' men. Putting il
bIuntly, Army and Navy men
tend to resent interference OF
the Office Of Focts and Fig
ures, the Office Of Government
when Anthony crossed to woo
Cleopatra, when Mare Nostrum
was its real title and not just a
"lackey's" idle dream, when the