Evening star., 1942-03-24
Macarthur Pledges
Libera|ity in News
OF His Operations
Silence Is q Crime,
GeneruIissimo Tells
Writers in Australia

BY the Associated Press.
UNITED STATES ARMY HEAD
QUARTERS, Australia, March "a.
Gen. Douglas Macarthur,
though saying Il am an old CEN
sor myself" has pledged himself
to get news for newspapermen
covering his headquarters rather
than suppress 1t.
The generals promise was made
yesterday during his of -the-record
discussion with correspondents and
1t was permitted to be published
today.
MY main purpose" he said, "iS
not to suppress news but to get
news for you.
The reason for efforts by the
United States and Australia to in
form the public what is going on is
that If 1t does not know the truth
Its imagination operates, thereby re-
ducing confidence.
"Silence Is Crime
'Silence will begin to react against
you 1t, therefore, is crime. 1t is
important that the public should be
told so it can summon confidence
and determination of purpose in
support Of the war effort.
Il want your help, without which
we cannot get that maximum effort
needed to win.
Il am an old censor myself. What
I have said does not mean that what
we give out here you have to take
and use or that you are limited to
canned news and cannot use your
brilliancy.
1T does not mean you must ab-
stain from criticism, but hope that
before you criticize you will avail
yourselves of the facts. If you do,
you will find most criticism dis
appears.
When you start to tear down
public confidence in military leaders
you practically destroy an army.
Il am always glad to give you my
full knowledge or opinion on any
0QUJCtO, Oul oS bdIh6l
Aid Of Public Opinion Needed.
The supreme commander of the
United Nations in the Southwest
Pacific declared there had been
nothing more astonishing in the
progress of this war. which is really
the application of the mechanics of
force to human nature, than the
position occupied by public opinion.
"One cannot wage war under
present conditions without the sup
port of public opinion, which is
tremendously moulded by the press
and other propaganda forces.
Men will not fight and die with
out knowing what they are fighting
and dying for. The care with
which the enemy keeps the truth
from his people and tries to incline
their minds toward certain channels
and to implant certain ideas shows
the weight he lays upon it.
In the democracieS 1t is essential
that the public should know the
truth.
The old days called for censor
ship embodying a method of con-
troll in which the emphasis was
placed upon preventing the leakage
of information of military value.
The censorship of these days has
gone infinitely beyond that.
There is almost voluntary CEN
sorship now. No one wants to help
the enemy. The moment the public
knows that anything printed has in
advertently or unwittingly helped
the enemy it will demand that such
aid be stopped
Gen. Macarthur reminded news
men that in 1915 War Secretary
Newton D. Baker gave him the task
of United States Army press rela-
tions and that he had handled them
for long time.
He disclosed that he had placed
two of the most brilliant officers of
his present staff-Col. LIE Grande A
Diller and 1t. Col. Lloyd Lehrbas
formerly an Associated Press CORE
spondent-in charge of press rela-
tions in Australia.
Col. Lehrbas covered the War De-
partment when Gen. Macarthur
was chief of staff and was an avi-
ator in the First World War. The
generals high regard for the colonel
was illustrated at MacArthur's re-
ception in Melbourne Saturday.
Surrounded by high-ranking well
wishers, Gen. Macarthur spotted
Col. Lehrbas, left the crowd and
gripped both of the colonel's hands
Jack Turcott, correspondent of the
New York Daily News. recorded in
a news dispatch from Australia.
How in the hell are you Larry?'
the general shouted. The two then
walked to the microphone where
Gen. Macarthur read his pencileo
speech promising to lead the United
Nations to victory.
Col Lehrbas, 43, is native OF
Montpelier, Idaho, and has done
newspaper work in Salt Lake City
Chicago, Manila and Shanghai. He
joined the Associated Press staff
In Washington in 1888. In Poland
and Central Europe, he covered
early stages of the present war.