THE DEPARTMENT DESIRED THAT THE EMBASSY ASSIST IN THE RENEGOTIATION OF AN INFORMAL ARRANGEMENT BETWEEN THE FOREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SYSTEM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00765A000100010120-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 6, 2009
• Sequence Number: 120
• Publication Date: March 28, 1947
• Content Type: MEMO

COPt
FOR `l> PO ftTIOM
Officer in Charge of the Ame can"'Misision,
T Deperlaelt des re that the :lhtbsasy' assist in the
resaeage ;of' in' nforial' arraamgisent between' the Pore
Broade st Iuforsation 'Branch" of the Central .lnt.flig1~ac, G tp;
and the British Broadcasting' Corporation for .the exchanged oZ ` ,
ilattitored.,igareiga broadcasts.
D, ng the, war the Foreign Broadcast Inforsation' Brthch, ` vhf eS
W S Called the Yoceign Broadcast Intelligence Sere ile,` bad. 'r F
au it t aeelprccal a aage~a nt With ire British Broad?astS g,
! Cor rep whereb~r,^tSeign: broadcasts monitored ;by th a goreiga ,
Broadcast Informwson Branch and the British Broadcasting Corpera-
~':: tIon. would be freely' interchanged. The. purpose of thi arr -
t'..waa'teo effe st ? onomies: by dividing the: operation at w
tr~e monitoring and eelidsinatin unnecessary duplication. T .
British, Broadcasting : orporat on ins tow' ovidd.ng the pi t, n' a,
Broadcast ormativn:Bsemoh itith he;;p itict-of its Eprapern
'monito "the Foreign Broadnet dlefon tioA Stamen is~_gi?"
: l etnrp *a relativelyr
the British Broadcasting Qorporaixiou'in
4116 of fiddle Salters btoadgast material, i146h is wonitored
'the; Foreign Broadcast Information B,raaoh, Mission at Cairn,', ;T'
present' reciprocal arrangement gives the 1breign?Broadcast,.`
Li&!!. rsnoh f3' ,sprq.material.from thee BritiesR th
Nor*-ispeci`#i aell?: British Brogclcaaetiatg Corpai'~e -
pr the For ign B cast Information' ranch'witir.# pr63r3maetety t
Ty, words of broadcast ''tgxt each day, Whereas the Foreign a road ' ...
pao't Tnfotngit sda > isil* ii,Cairo supplies the Bvttiai W, th.
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ay r
~roadeaet text slob. c
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tititdi Broadcastingg Corporation has'infor~pal ,y" deli? '
to tieaForeign, Broadcast Information. Branch its desire to equalize
tthe reciprocal aeraugeaeiat k ., having ? the foreign BroaddSa ? forge-
tiec~s Bramah previ.de the Sri H ilt Broadcasting. Corporatloa wit
ma v rom the Far East sLatina' America' which it is impossible , .
for he fish Broadcasting CCorporatiop too monitor ,n t e htited
E:tuglom. 'The Foreign Bra ton6t'iafoztat * r~c- understapds
?.~thotsh. Fbra~ign Dffiee'ha ,' the British;Broaedea'st Cor
ttom its a?yeprd tprih p e contiyn nce ert s, ~rlye~ysyyXa
`' arrang'E~ent 'b tweem,`he, g ope ~ ions ? It
iterea~t
 Approved For Release 2009/07/06 : CIA-RDP80-00765A000100010120-0
interest of the United States Government to enter into such an
arrangement with the British Broadcasting Corporation because if
the British Broadcasting Corporation refused to turn over tb the
Foreign Broadcast Information Branch the product of its European
monitoring, it would copt the thitedStates Government at least
$1$000.,000 a year to duplicate the British Broadcasting Corporation's
European monitoring operation.
At the present time the Embassy in Cairo is negotiating with the
Egyptian Government to obtain its permission for the continued operation.
of the Foreign, Broadcast Information Branch monitoring station in Egypt,
If this pereission is not, granted by the Egyptian Government,. the Foreign
Broadcast Information Branch desires, as ;part of the new reciprocal
arrangement, British approval of moving; the Foreign Broadcast Informa-
tion Branchmoaitorisig station from Cairo to Cyprus.
In order to equalize the proposed reciprocal arrangement from the
standpoint of the Foreign Broadcast Information Branch, it'is;desired
that the British hagdle Foreign Broadcast Information Bi=rh communica
tions (10,600 words per day) from the Middle East to London via
British' Signal Corps radio teletype facilities, The Foreign Broad-
castIn#ormation Branch is using commercial'-channels, from Cairo to
London at the present time but cannot continue to pay the cost
of "these facilities. If the Foreign Broadcast Information Brax;ch Middle
Eastern monitoring station remains in Cairo the traffic might be'
handled by. the British Signal Corps center at Fayid.' If the Foreign.
Broadcast Information Branch must move from Cairo-to Cyprus, it is
desired that the British agree either to handle Foreign Broadcast',
Infordation Branch ooamunicatione from Cyprus to Tendon or to permit
the erection of a radio transmitter on Cyprus to send the monitored
material to Fzankfurt,.for,relay to London.
Any such reciprocal arrangement would be informal and merely an
operating understanding. However,, the officers of the Foreign Broad-
cast Information Branch have been informally advised by the British
Broadcasting ' Corporation.. that it will be necessary for the British
Broadcasting' Corporation to- have an approval in`principle by the
Foreign Office, and probably the War Office, to the desired commit- 25X1..
ments'for'the fiddle East.- "The Foreign Broadcast Information Branch
desires. that the arrangement'be negotiated as soon as possible in
order that it may know its commitments prior to the end of'the present
fiscal year. `Chief of the, Foreign Broadcast 25X1
Information Branch, an Chief of the Central
IntelligeneaGrodp CommunicationDivision, will' arrive in London
early in April to negotiate the details of the reciprocal arrangement
at the operating level. Thy Embassy is, therefore, requested to
assist these officials in every way possible to obtain from,the
British Government approval of the informal reciprocal arrangement
outlined herein.
For the Embassy' a further. information, the following detailed
operational plan forreciprocity is proposed by the'Foreiwi Broadcast
Information Branch:
1.- Service provided the United'States by the i)nited`Kingdom.
a. The monitored text consisting;-of roughly 75,000 words
daily providing adequate coverage of . medium wave and
low
 Approved For Release 2009/07/06: CIA-RDP80-00765A000100010120-0
S.
low powered abort ve foreign broadcast
s "" intercep ions from" Europe: This would be made
availabler,to the Foreign Broadcast Informa#ion
x Blanch ed~ tors in . London . as at present..
', 1;" b. Tren anion via Britia#h Signal, Corps facilities
~O,000 wards,dai ,Y .koreign:Broadcast
6natio% Broach traffic from its Middle :
astezln mtonitari g etatiou to London.
' (1} it .the Foreign r&roadcastnfonmet ors Btitulh F'
raai.ae4'in,,Cairo it is hoped that.this
traffic o?uld :be handled through' the British
`? 91giQai Center. at Fayid
r. k.
(2) If. tine 1 eiga Broadcast Ig?ormaU ou Br:atch,
is forced to move from Cairo to f yprus, this .
tra fic c'4nld be handled