ARRB REQUEST: CIA-IR-12: CONTACTS WITH JOURNALISTS OR PUBLISHING HOUSES
Originator: ARRB
From: ARRB
To: CIA/HRG
Document date: 12/18/1997
Document type: PAPER - TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

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1704-10336-10011

2023 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

ReCIA IR12

Assassination Records Review Board

600 E Street NW • 2nd Floor • Washington, DC 20530

(202) 724-0088 - Fax: (202) 724-0457

December 18, 1997

Mr. John Pereira

Chief

Historical Review Group

Center for the Study of Intelligence

Central Intelligence Agency

Washington, D.C. 02505

CIA NAS NO OBJECTION TO

OSCLASS

IRGATION AND/OR

RELEASS OF CIA INFORMATION

IN THIS DOCUMENT

Re:

Status of CIA Responses to Assassination Records Review Board's Requests for

Additional Information and Records

Dear John:

I am writing to follow-up on our telephone call earlier today and to convey my serious

concern about the status of CIA's responses to the Review Board's requests for

additional information and records. Although CLA has completed its responses to

several requests, and many others have been answered in part, a significant number of

requests have not been answered — including some that were made more than two

years ago. On many occasions we have been assured that responses would be

forthcoming, only to have promised dates come and go without answers. It is now

extremely important that these requests be answered promptly so that we may conduct

a proper follow-up if necessary. The issues that we can now identify as being of the

highest priority are identified in the text below by double asterisks (**)' and we request

that they be answered within the next month. We request that the remaining requests

be answered by April 1, 1998.

The remainder of this letter is divided into two parts: first, a listing of the formal

requests for information and records, and second, a listing of the informal requests for

information and records. Please let me know if your understanding of any of the

following points differs from ours so that we can resolve any potential discrepancies.

'As identified more fully below, the issues are: CIA-1 Organizational Material,

CLA-6 Cables and Dispatches, CIA-13 Backchannel Communications, CLA-IR-03

HTLINGUAL Documents, CIA-IR-04 Disposition of Angleton Files, CIA-IR-07 Claude

Barnes Capehart, CLA-IR-15 Electronic "take" from Mexico City, CLA-IR-21 DRE

Monthly Operational Reports, CLA-IR-22 "'A" Files on Clay Shaw and Jim Garrison.

BOARD MEMBERS: John R. Tunheim, Chair • Henry F. Graff • Kermis 1. Hall • William L. Joyce • Anna K. Nelson

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in...

Mr. John Pereira

December 18, 1997

Page 9

CIA-IR-12 Contacts with Journalists or Publishing Houses.

The Review Board seeks to determine to what extent, if any, CLA might have

attempted to influence any journalists or publishers regarding public discussion

of the assassination. This request, originally discussed in March 1997, was raised

at the DO follow-up briefing on April 1, 1997. CLA has had no response and no

time frame for a response.

CIA-IR-13 Office or Person Dealing with Organized Crime and Cuba.

The Review Board requested that CLA make a particular personnel file available.

The file was made available by CLA for review. The Review Board seeks a full

and accurate formal response to this request detailing any and all searches made

and the results of those searches. Once a formal statement is provided, this

request will be complete.

CIA-IR-14 Breckinridge Files.

CIA (OGC) will determine the disposition of the files of Scott D. Breckinridge.

CIA has had no response and no time frame for a response.

**CIA-IR-15 Electronic "take" from Mexico City Station.

The Review Board has for some time been attempting to determine whether it

has had access to all of CIA's surveillance "take" from the Cuban and Soviet

facilities in Mexico City at the time of the Oswald visit and in the immediate

wake of the assassination. On numerous occasions, the Review Board has asked

whether there was any surveillance take in addition to what is currently in the

collection.

On March 18, 1997, the Review Board provided additional leads to CIA to assist

it in answering these questions. The DO has agreed to check Headquarters

records for the file referenced in HMMW 12454, to search for the crypts cited in

this document, and to search for HMMA 20307 and other cables or dispatches

cited in this document.

In addition, the DS&T will query its offices for possible records on Mexico City

and Cuba and for the present location of Staff D records. Regardless of the

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SECRET

pus,

24 August 1998

MEMORANDUM FOR: Laura Denk

Executive Director, ARRB

FROM:

J. Barry Harrelson

Project Officer, HRP/OIM

-

SUBJECT:

CIA-IR-12, Contacts With Journalists or

Publishing Houses

1. This is the Classified response to referent request...

2. (U) The ARRB staff requested information to

determine to what extent, if any, the Agency might have

attempted to influence any journalists or publishers

regarding public discussion of the JFK assassination.

3. (U) The unclassified response to this request

describes the fact a number of covert action projects

existed for the purpose of thwarting the expansion of

Communism throughout the world.

Within those projects there

were relationships with journalists and publishing houses.

4. (S) The specific cryptonyms

used for these projects

are mentioned in House Select Committee on Assassinations

document 180-10142-10087.

The cryptonyms and a brief

description of each Covert Action Staff project follows:

KOPERA,'- a project designed to counter Soviet

activities in international organizations. It was

specifically designed to unite and promote anti-Communist

intellectuals.

The true name of the project was possibly

the Farfield Foundation.

B. OKPUNDIT - a project involved in book publishing

matters and the international distribution of anti-Communist

It was known previously by the cryptonyms ZRBLESS!

WUPUNDIT and WUBONBON:

"ORMATADOR and ORMOSAIC were related

projects.

c.

WUSENDER - a project to purchase and distribute

books.

WURASIN- a project to cover the international

mailing of American books translated into Spanish and

French.

WUTRANSIT - a project to purchase and mail books

to selected addressees in Latin America and Africa.

SECRET

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SECRET

F

WURABBIT: - a project to cover a worldwide news

and feature story service.

It was possibly a cryptonym for

Continental Press or Braeger Publishing

G.

WUTARY and WUTAROY - (believed to refer to the

same project), one tor press and propaganda development on

targets of opportunity involving Latin America.

5.

(U) This, together with the unclassified

memorandum,

competes Agency action on this project. If you

have any questions, please advise.

J. Barry Harrelson

CL:

(0611637}

CL REASON: 1.5 (c)

DECL:

X1

DRV:

HUM 2-82

SECRET

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fite cy

CLA SPECIAL, COLLECTIONS

RELEASE IN FULL

2000

18 September 1998

MEMORANDUM FOR: Ms. Laura Denk

Executive Director, ARRB

FROM:

J. Barry Harrelson

JFK Project Officer, HRP/OIM

SUBJECT:

CIA-IR-12, Contacts With Journalists or

Publishing Houses

1.

This is in response to referent request which asked

for information about possible CIA contacts with journalists

and publishing houses in the context of the JFK

assassination and ensuing investigations.

Following a search of its records, the Directorate

of Operations provided a response which describes a number

of such activities engaged in by the Agency. The DO

3.

This completes the Agency's action on this request.

If you have any questions, please advise.

Bana

J. Barry Harrelson lI

Att. A/S

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- .:

UNCLASSIFIED

21 August 1998

MEMORANDUM FOR: (U) Chief, JEK Declassification

Project/HRP/OIM/DA

FROM:

SUBJECT:

REFERENCE:

(U) Fredrick C. Wickham, Jr.

Chief, Information Management Staff,

External Support Group

(U) DO Response to CIA IR 12

(U) ARRB Request for Additional

Information and Records No. CIA IR 12

1. (U) This memorandum is an unclassified response to

informal request number 12 (CIA IR 12) from the staff of the

Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB). A classified

response will also be provided to be more

specific and

detailed. The staff has requested information about contacts

with journalists or publishing houses, that is to what

extent, if any, CIA might have attempted to influence any

journalists or publishers regarding public discussion of the

assassination.

2. (U) The terms like "journalists," "publishers,"

"publishing houses," "media," and other

such generic terms

were not searchable. To answer this question required the

research of crypts mentioned in various documents in the JEK

"assassination records."

3 (U) The research of the crypts provided from

documents in the JFK "assassination records" all refer to

projects managed under the overall guidance of a staff in

the Directorate of Operations and in all instances they were

projects that concern press and propaganda programs designed

to promote anti-Communism and to counter Soviet press and

propaganda initiatives worldwide. Specifically, these

various projects were developed for the following reasons:

A. to counter Soviet activities in international

intellectual organizations, in order to unite and

promote anti-Communist intellectuals.

B. to be involved in book publishing matters and

the international distribution of anti-Communist books.

UNCLASSIFIED

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UNCLASSIFIED

SUBJECT: (U) DO Response to CIA IR 12

C. to purchase and distribute books.

D. to cover the international mailing of American

books translated into Spanish and French languages.

E. to purchase and mail books to selected

addressees

in Latin America and Africa.

F.

service.

to cover a worldwide news and feature story

G.

as a Press and Propaganda Developmental and

Target of Opportunity project involving Latin America:

L DONINE

Fredrick C. Wickham, Jr.

UNCLASSIFIED

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