Evening star., 1950-07-23
Macarthur Attempting to Fight
Korea War Without Censorship

security was involved, that tn,
report would give no laid or com
fort to the enemy" that it woult
not injure morale at home. Fol
weeks, the story was stalled be
hind Observation-Disclosures.
Eventually, as they always do
the facts came out.
Gen. Patton went on to becom,
one of the great heroes of tn,
war.
Political censorship, never full!
acknowledged by the censors, wa
the worst. And, in the long run
it probably was more virulent il
it's effects. Certainly, it was mor'
infuriating.
The old man was never so heav!
on your back as when you had {
political story.
In April, 1949, an AP CORE
Spondent, the late Joseph Morton
attempted to file an exclusive
interview with a man now cele.
brated but then almost obscure
Josip Broz. now Marshall Tito
Mr.. Morton had risked his life II
get the story in occupied Yugo
slavia. He later was killed in al
even more dangerous mission.
The Tito story was stopped.
Release Ordered by Roosevelt.
The AP carried the fight to Gen
Maitland Wilson, British com
mander-in-ch in the Mediter
ranean, then to Prime Ministe
Winston Churchill, and finally t,
President Roosevelt. The Presi
dent ordered the interview re
leased.
In a letter to Kent Cooper, ex
ecutive director Of the AP, Mr.
Roosevelt wrote:
Il am most happy to note tina
the Associated Press article IL
question has been released TO
publication. I agree with you tina
the full flow of news from theater
Of operation should be encouraged
The theater command gives as
surances that it has no desire t,
censor for anything other thar
military security"
If that was sublime, this wa.
family ridiculous:
One day, on a road in Italy.
stopped to ask directions from .
British convoy. I discovered tina
the drivers were all Palestine Jews
working as a unit. They were tn,
first Palestinians to appear at thu
front.
Understanding, Meaning mo"
But the field censor said he ha,
no authority to pass the story
It would have to be referred t.
Cairo. He was not permitted II
mention Palestinian truck drivers
even in a message. So, strugglin,
to remember his Bible, he identi
fed them as David Charioteers.
Cairo first replied that the mes
sage was incomprehensible pleas
repeat. Then, understanding,
said mo-"
Why? Well. probably becaus
Palestine wanted independents
after the war. The fact, If known
that a Palestinian unit was il
action, would have fed the fire
of nationalism. But the reasol
given was security"
In the last weeks of the wal
the American armies were haltec
by order, at the Elbe River, facin
Berlin. ]. Yves Gallagher, no,
AP chief Of bureau for German,
wrote that they could take Berli
more quickly than the Russian
approaching from the East, if the
were unleaShed.
He waS<careful to explain tn
reason: The Germans were SUI
rendering by hordes to the Ameri
cans and British. They were fight
ing ferociously to avoid surrender
ing to the Russians. The stor
made no invidious comparison
between the two armies.
Why 1t Was Stopped.
That story was stopped, to,
Why? ut would unnecessarily il
ritate our Allies"
In fairness, however, it mus
be said that on another occasion
the Army acted with the grea
wisdom. The story had tremen
dous potentialities, at home an
for the Japanese.
During an action in Burma
some 200 American soldiers threy
down their guns and refused
go into a battle.
Most of them were wounded
but able to walk. All of them wer
sick, with malaria or dysentery
They had been in a hospital Whe
an emergency call came for re
inforcements, anybody able t
walk and carry a gum"
Usually, that means cooks, bot
| tie washers. drivers, non-comba
personnel. In this case an Office
miSinterpreted the order an
pulled the men out of their hos
pital beds.
They refused to board tn
planes. It was insubordination, i
the strict sense of the word.
At first, the story was stopped
I pointed out, however, that
would certainly get back to tn
United States, because some of tn
men were being invalided home
So, after an official investigation
the Army released it.