Evening star., 1942-03-30
Roosevelt Reported
Planning 10 Merge
Setups
Duplication Of Effort,
Heavy Expense Couse
Of Adverse Criticism

Announcement Of . major reoY-
ganization Of the Federal Govern
ment's wartime information policy
and establishment Of . new central
agency - public information head
quarters is expected this week, 1t
was reported today in reliable quar-
ters.
Sources outside the White House
disclose that the pressure on Presi-
dent Roosevelt for action In the
international dilemma has been
strengthened recently by obvious
public dissatisfaction with the way
the Government is handling the
news about the progress of the war
and the war effort.
Change Has Two Aims.
The proposed reorganization, de-
tails Of which are not available,
is said to be based on two aims
first, to reduce the large sum now
spent on publicity. and, second, to
increase the efficiency of the ad-
ministration's wartime public rela-
tions setup.
1t is expected that the adminis-
tration will drop its effort to in
fluence public opinion directly
through q propaganda bureau, like
the present once Of Facts and
Figures. and will base its future
publicity program on the thought
that simple factual information
readily available Is what the Nation
wants.
The administration Is expected
also to abandon its practice OF de-
centralized information and to set
up some sort Of central clearing
house. Information for domestic
consumption about the country's
war effort now is distributed from
these major sources:
The ONCE of Facts and Figures.
The Division of Information,
which covers the War Production
Board.
War Department Press.
Navy Department Press.
The White House.
The once of Government Re
ports.
Army and Navy Autonomous.
All these agencies except the
Army and Navy press services are
expected to be merged in some fiex-
lble fashion under the pending
scheme. and a greater centralized
control over the Army and Navy
public relations also is expected,
even though they remain autono-
nous.
The revision is expected TO bring
to an end the experiment of having
Archibald MacLeish occupy the key
position in the Administrations pub
lie relations program, although Mr..
MacLeish, librarian of Congress,
probably will stay on in some ca
pacity. The White House Is said
by outside sources to have concluded
that public relations should be in
the hands Of newspaperman.
The three candidates whose names
are mentioned most often are Wal
ter Lippman, columnist and author;
Elmer Davis, radio commentator,
and Lowell Mellett, former Scripps-
Howard editor, who Is an admins
tratiye assistant to the President
and o. G. RS director. ,.
Mr.. Mellett, however, has aroused
some criticism as q result Of his
drive for . new building for the
O. G. r.
To Dominate Foreign Programs.
The new agency is said to be
planned to dominate the Federal in
formation program for foreign con-
sumption as well as the domestic
program. Foreign information Is
handled now by the co-ordinator Of
information, William j. Donovan,
and the co-ordinator of inter-
American affairs, Nelson Rocke-
feller.
Mr.. Rockefeller operates in a dis
tinctive field, but Col. Donovan and
the o. F. F. now frequently over
lap. The o. F. F. has a program for
foreign language papers In the