THE CIA HISTORICAL STAFF AND THE CS HISTORICAL PROGRAM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83-00764R000300110049-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 19, 2001
• Sequence Number: 49
• Publication Date: October 15, 1969
• Content Type: MEMO

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How to conduct the CS Historical Program in such a
manner that it is still a part of the Agency Historical
Program and yet is compartmented from non-CS personnel and
provides safeguards for CS sources and methods.
This problem has existed for some time but was exacerbated
by the establishment of the Agency Historical Staff in January
1969 and, more recently, by the appointment (without consultation
with, or concurrence of, the DDP) of a senior editor to the
Historical Staff. The Chief, Historical Staff, (C/HS), feels
strongly that he, his deputy and, now, his editor must have
access to CS Historical Papers and to individual writers of
CS Histories in their planning, writing and editing phases.
The need for such access is predicated, inter alia, on the
necessity to insure the uniformity and quality of-all Agency
Historical Papers.
It appears to the CS Historical Board that the Agency
Historical Program involves two principles which have found
themselves to be - but need not be - in opposition. One is
the desirability of a centralized Historical Program for the
Agency as a whole. C/HS interprets and seeks to implement
this concept by an almost complete melding of the Historical
Programs of the DCI's Office and the four Directorates. He,
sees his role as director, in a command sense, of the various
Historical Programs to insure uniform quality and completeness
of coverage in all stages of the planning, writing and editing
of the Historical Papers produced by each Directorate.
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The second principle is one which is the cornerstone of
CS doctrine - to wit, the need to safeguard sources and methods,
and to insure compartmentation and strict need to know.
C/HS seeks to accommodate the second principle (which he
seems reluctant to accept with the importance attributed to it
by the CS) by averring that he, his deputy and, now, his editor
will have access to CS Histories only with the consent of the
controlling CS component. The difficulty with this accommoda-
tion is the problem of identification by the CS component of
those Papers which the HS needs to see in connection with the
overall Agency Historical Program. This is particularly true
since the CS has been counselled to cooperate fully with the
C/HS and his deputy, who have full clearances to see any
papers they feel the need to read. Without clarification of
this need to know issue, such "need" might be predicated
solely on the desire to insure uniform quality of all histori-
cal papers.
There would appear to be three alternative courses of
action in this situation:
1. Seek agreement with the Executive Director - Comptroller
along the following lines:
a. C/HS to establish guidelines regarding the quality,
uniformity and completeness of all Agency Historical Programs
and Papers.
b. C/HS to delegate responsibility to the Historical
Officers of the four Directorates to implement their individual
programs in conformity with the above guidelines.
Note: Each HO would continue to make available
to C/HS full information regarding the Historical Program
of his Directorate, including Program Outline of papers
to be written, production, writers, etc. Furthermore,
he would consult with C/HS on a continuing basis regard-
ing problems arising in the implementation of his program.
c. When a substantive need arises, e.g., in the
writing of a DCI paper, for the author to obtain information
contained in a CS Historical Paper, his specific needs to be
made known to the CS/HO. In most instances the writers of
such overall histories can have their requirements satisfied
by consultation with the component responsible for the CS
History or by reading only a pertinent portion of the CS paper.
When necessary, however, in the judgment of the controlling CS
component, the entire paper would be made available to the
writer.
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Note: CS Historical Papers contain a great
deal of data about personalities, techniques and other
operational matters of no pertinence to an overall
history.
2. Continue as we have in the past with only the C/HS
and his deputy authorized to read CS Histories on request to,
and concurrence by, the controlling component.
Note: See, however, the dilemma described
above which the CS component faces in determing the C/HS's
need. to know. The Historical Officer of one CS Division
has suggested that, unless this need to know issue is
resolved, some components may be inclined to avoid writing
or contributing papers to the CS Historical Program or
to write them in such broad terms as to destroy their
usefulness.
3. Accede to the wishes of C/HS and permit the HS/Editor
to have the same right of access to CS Histories enjoyed by
the C/HS and his deputy.
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the approval of the Executive
Director - Comptroller be sought to the first alternative
course of action described above. If this should receive
his concurrence, the CS Historical Program would continue
under the guidance of the C/HS as a compartmented segment
of the Agency Historical Program.
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