EXECUTIVE SECRECY ATTACKED IN REPORT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP74-00297R000401370016-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 23, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 7, 2013
• Sequence Number: 16
• Publication Date: November 4, 1955
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Nnv A Iiior s- STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/05/07: CIA-RDP74-00297R000401370016-3
:far Inadequately challenged:
? Executive Secrecy ! that they have advanced to the
*int where the civil liberties
?
Attacked i of the people themsel /es are
n Reportl threatened; and that some pru-
_ _ ,dent remedial action by Congress
Is necessary."
Mr. Raymond based his report
On six weeks of interviews and
discustgons with Government of-
ficials and leading Vfasbington
By ALLEN DRURY newspaper men.
''.41444ivrailibetecesovarsarialre . Some, such as Elmer Davis,
wASHINGTON, Nov. 3 - jadio commentator and wartime
The American Civil Liberties . head of the Office of War In-
fotmation, doubted that any real
trn:on att.iciced Government bum was being done by current
se'.'recy under the Truman and .,Covernment secrecy practices.
Eisenhower Administrations to- 1But most. Mr. Raymond report-
day. It said abuses of author- ed, expressed alarm at the
ity to withhold news "were1 trend'
Text of the summary of Mem
and proposa14, Pagc 11.,
never so rampant as now." Lauds A. N. r. A. Efforts
In a special rePort prepared Mr. Raymond prised efforts,
by Allen Raymond. a newspa_ 'Of the freedom of information
;committee of the American So-
per man, the organization said:
itiety of Newspaper Editors in
-It is a fair consensus that., 'combatting un'ustified secrecy.
these abuses have already fur- Be added, however, that "their
tailed the power of the press ..efforts thus far have been trier-
and of Congress itself to be of gective in turning the tide."
service to the people by finding The report suggested a study'
out what goes on in govern. by "non-governmental agenciei"
of laws such as the Administrar
nient: that they have been ac-
tire Procedures Act, the Atomic'
companied by an arrogation of ? Energy Act and the Feder?t
powers within the Executive of
Communications Act that tent
doubtful constitutionality: so to restrict the flow of informs;
ttlon to the public.
' It also recommended creation
.ef an independent agency within,
pail Government to handle de-
classification of previously secret
documents and to work for
g-eater disclosure of informa-
tion. And it urged extension of
the act governing registration of
lobbyists with Congress to cover
lobbyists who attempt to influ-
ence the various Government
agencies
Mr. Rs ymonri 'report 'said
that the power of the press to be
useful In fighting the situation
posed by Government secrecy
was curtailed "in great degree"
by two factors ? the Govern-
ment's control of free discussion
on two other media, radio and
television. and "a widespread
distrust of the press itself by
large segments of the popula-
tion, as, for example, in the labor
movement." ?
At the moment, Mr. Raymond
noted, the problem of secrecy
"has not become one of wide-
spread public concern." But he
said it had "impigned on the
consciousness of Congress" in
the form of a House Government
Operations subcommittee study
of Government secrecy.
The subcommittee, headed by
Representative John Moss, Dem-
ocrat of California, has sched-
uled hearings starting next Mon-
day.
Mr. Raymond singled out Pres-
ident Eisenhower's directive of
May 17, 1954, as having "im-
measurably" increased the area
of Government suppression of
news.
?
Defense Secretary Charles lift
Wilson, directed that it was "nig
in the public interest" to dig-
close letters or conversations be-
tween offitials of the Executive'
branch.
The letter was designed tore-
vent certain testimony .by Jobs n
Adamc, former Defense DepIrt-
ment counsel, during Senate sub-
committee hearing last year on:
the dispute between the Army
and Senator Joseph R. McCarthy,,
Republican of Wisconsin. '
''If you extend Presidential
immunity to examination of the
entire Executive Branch of the
Government,' Mr. Raymond
said, "you enable the Executive
to violate the civil liberties of
any citizen without Congression-
al power to formulate correc-
tive legislation, because Con-
gress would be unable to learn
the facts in the case."
The report aliso criticized di-
rectives by Mr. Wilson restrict-
ing inforputtiors, from the De-
fense Department and activities
of the Atomic Energy Commis-
!lion in limiting the spread of
, The President, in a letter to scaintific information.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/05/07: CIA-RDP74-00297R000401370016-3