Evening star., 1942-04-05
Co>ordinat0r of Wartime News
Being Sought by White House
Qualifications of Director Believed Hard to Find
in Single Personality; Conflicts
Now Numerous
BY Ray,n p. Brandt.

propaganda in Latin America-but
mostly in the form of American news.
The White House.
The War Department.
The Navy Department.
The Federal Communications Conimis-
sion.
The Maritime Commission.
The first five organizations were estab-
hshed as part of the war effort even be-
fore Pearl Harbor. The other five are
old agencies, wise in the ways of Wash
ington.
The White House plan, it is reported,
would leave the War and Navy Depart
ments' publicity Offices outside overall
control, and they would continue to
gather and distribute information as
they thought proper. Yet it is known
that both services are trying to reach
a policy on making public the deaths
and injuries in domestic airplane ac-
cidents.
Serious Policy Problem.
In Great Britain such information Is
withheld from the public on the theory
that frequent appearance of such news
items would tend to discourage the
people. But in this country, with its
many local newspapers and compre-
henSive news services, would not the
suppression of information about such
accidents tend to create a feeling among
those in the localities Of the accidents
that the Government was not telling all
the truth? The Army and the Navy
would like to have the correct answer
to that question.
The Maritime Commission Is con-
fronted with a similar problem relating
to casualties on our coast. At a recent
press conference veteran reporter COM
planned that although he and others had
information that survivors had been
landed at e small North Carolina port,
the commission would not verify the
news for two days, and when it did,
its announcement was substantially
identical with the first unveriflable news
reports.
There are also jealousies and buck
The heads of one or two of the agencies
are seeking more power and prestige
and are willing to take the responsibility
for making decisions The heads OF
other agencies are fearful of what Con-
gress may do to their appropriations if
it becomes known that particular
agency has given out information re-
flecting on the reputation of Congress
as a whole, some particular bloc or even
one especially powerful Senator or Rep
resentative.
Also, the State Department does not
want the co-ordinator of information,
Col william J. Donovan, or the CO.
ordinator of inter-American affairs,
Nelson Rockefeller, making or announc-
ing American international policy when
the department has not been consulted.
Sayre Alarms Departments.
The War and Navy Departments were
alarmed when Francis B. Sayre, high
commissioner to the Philippines, dis
closed at press conference how Gen.
Macarthur had left Bataan Peninsula
and other items of Philippine
news of great public interest. Futile
efforts were made to try to suppress
this information a half hour after it
was given out by Mr.. Sayre.
For the past several months there
has been Committee on War Informa-
ton, composed of representatives Of
most of the departments and agencies
handling war news and propaganda.
While its efforts have been helpful, it
has not solved the essential problem
because, first, the members could not
always decide on policy, and, second,
1t lacked authority to enforce the deci-
sions it did reach.
Departments or agencies were jealous
of their own practices and their repre-
sentatives could give many reasons why
certain information should not be made
public.
The inaction, duplication, rivalry and
lack of cohesion at one time led to
discussion within administration circles
over the desirability of central agency
from which all news and propaganda
would be distributed, something on the
order of the British Ministry of Informa-
ton. These plans apparently were
(See BRANDT, Page B-3)