FBIS AFFILIATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-00733R000200230071-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 18, 2010
• Sequence Number: 71
• Publication Date: August 8, 1985
• Content Type: MEMO

ILLEGIB
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WIVITS GROUP F LE
).S4ORANDUM FOR: Bureau and Unit Chiefs
SUBJECT : FBIS Affiliatioft
RESCISSION : 12 Doc 1974 ltr to Bureau and Unit Chiefs,
same subject fl
1. L] This s orand*at restates our policy on ..--..
acknowledging FBIS' affiliation. The guidance pertains to
c:.scussions with non-FBIS persons and does not change our
:v-1icy that foreign employees who commit their futures to
L-a FBIS career should be informally and in low key fashion
cuvised of their affiliation.
2. 0 FBIS affiliation with the Agency is public
knowledge. While we therefore cannot deny this affiliation,
we want to avoid drawing attention to it. We awst bear in
mind that a safe statement in one country night damage us in
others. We must avoid being an embarrassment to host govern-
nr::r:ts Which must contend with sensitivity to "CIA activities.
t.e feel strongly that refusing to coraent on the CIA relation-
ship is safer than an official acknowledgement.
S. 0 Bureau staffers should routinely be reminded
to avoid volunteering to outsiders information on our affilia-
tion. In informal-conversations, staffers may point out-that
the bureau is part of the embassy, consulate or military. emit
wr.ich sponsors us and that it is administered by-FBIS`in . .
%ashington. They should not go beyond this unless the conver-
sation is with U.S. officials who have a need to know or with
whom evasiveness would be embarrassing.
4. U If formally questioned by a non-FBIS foreigner
or by non-official Americans, staffers should gracefully
refer the question to the host embassy, consulate or military
command.
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S. If an official and/or public acknowledgement
of our a ation appears unavoidable, it should not be
made by you. Consult with Ambassador and other
appropriate officials as well as F13IS Headquarters on how
to handle the development.
6. 0 An approved draft statement on FBIS operations
and on FBIS' place within the U.S. Government structure is
attached. You should complete the statement by supplying
the information on your bureau and pass it to the
official spokesman of your host organization and any other
u.:.. official in your area who is likely to be called upon
to officially comment on our affiliation. You should urge
the spokesman to refrain from volunteering information on
FBIS affiliation with the Agency. Use any part of this
letter in your discussions with the spokesman.. Should any
of these officers find difficulty with this approach and
guidance, advise me promptly.
Distribution:
Orig. $ 1 - Addressee
1-Et,PS
1 - Exec Reg
1 - D/FBIS
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SECRET
Identification with CIA
1979 IG Report on FBIS
The problem of notifying foreign nationals about
their true affiliation with the CIA has been outlined in the
bureau reports. The policy needs review. Although the
Director, FBIS told the inspection team that all foreign
nationals had been so advised, we found during inspections
in the field that this was not the case and that notifica-
tion policies varied widely from bureau to bureau. Some
bureau chiefs directly advise employees of their Agency
ties; others do so only if pressed. In the view of one
chief, his foreign employees preferred a policy that would
allow them plausible denial, under threat, of CIA affilia-
tion. In our judgment, a consistent policy needs to be
established concerning the notification of foreign national
employees of CIA affiliation.
Efforts to Resolve Problems in Managing Foreign Employees
It would be incorrect to imply that FBIS has not tried
over the years to solve the problems it has encountered in
-anaging its foreign national employees. It would be
;ually incorrect to claim that no progress has been made.
the recent important action was the effort to define, in an
.,)classified "Alien Administration Handbook," the regula-
'ons, procedures, and benefits that apply to foreign
SECRET
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FOREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SERVICE
P.O. Box 2604
Washington, D. C. 20013
(Letter sent to all bureau and unit.-chiefs)
FBIS affiliation with the-Agency has been noted in public print
on several recent occasions.. Avhile we ca Mot and do not wish to deny
this affiliation, we. must ensure that we do chat we can to minimize
the threat.to our overseas operations and embarrassment to host
governments. A careful. review and update of our practice in dealing
with questions concerning' our affiliation is therefore in order.
All.of your Stafers should be instructed to avoid volunteering
any information on your bureau's Agency affiliation. In informal
conversations, staffers may point out that the bureau is part of the
embassy, consulate or military tacit which sponsors us and that it is
administered by FBIS in Washington. Do not go beyond this. If the
conversation- is with U.S. officials who have a need to know, or with
whom failure to respond would be embarrassing, you of course may be
more forthcoming.
If formally questioned by a non-American or by non-official
Americans, we prefer that you gracefully refer the question to the
embassy, consulate or military command under which you operate. You
should then alert the OOS, Ambassador, and other appropriate officials
as well as FBIS Headquarters. We have enclosed an approved draft
statement on FBIS operations and on FBIS' place within the U.S. Govern-
ment structure for use by local U.S. spoke .man. You should complete
the draft statement in finished form, supplying the ~articalars of
your bureau, and submit -it to the spokesman together with the back-
groL*nd information, which is for his info tion only. Do not submit
to direct questioning.
You should urge the spokes-man to refrain from co .enting on
repo:-..s of F3:S . iliaticn with the CIA. We-have Lo'bear in mind
...at a safe statement in one country might damage us in others.
.:..s:: avoi_4 being an e*rbar,ssment to host govve:rrnents which miusil..
con:e-;" growing sensitivity to CLAD act1vit es. 'Even --hough the
20? .S in the^.u5iiC record, we feel strongly that reru.s l-j
n
to C07r'.ent cn the CIA relationship is safer than an o::ic:al
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r- r
0 -A
ac}mowledoe-ment. If an acimowledgement of our affiliation appears
Unavoidable, it should not be made by you and you should seek a
delay.of the statement if possible until FBIS Headquarters has been
consulted.
I suggest that you discuss this guidance with the Chief of Station
and the official spokesman of your sponsoring organization (embassy,
military, etc..) and- any-other U. S. official in your area who is likely
to be called on to officially co1ment on our affiliation. You should
advise Headquarters promptly if any of these find difficulty with this
guidance and the enclosed statement. Where no problems appear, please
report implementation routinely in your next monthly report.
Sincerely,
Enclosure
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FOREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SERVICE
P. O. Box 2604
Washington, D. C. 20013
NfiQ-5090
8 August 1985
Director, Foreign Broadcast Information Service
SUBJECT: Identification of Foreign National Employees with CIA
1. In the 1979 inspection of FBIS, the Inspector General's report
recommended that a "consistent policy needs to be established concerning
the notification of foreign national employees of CIA affiliation." In
its rebuttal to the IG Report, FBIS management stated that a "uniform
policy on informing or not informing foreign national employees that they
work for CIA would cause many FBIS managers concern." The FBIS statement
went on to state: "It is quite a different situation for a sophisticated
associate editor at London Bureau to be aware of such an affiliation than
it is for a chauffeur in Bahrain, for example. If implemented, a policy
of uniformly informing foreign nationals of their CIA affiliation could
cause serious problems in our relations with ambassadors, host govern-
ments, and the more sensitive or uneducated FN employees. We would
prefer that this requirement be broadened to simply require that we adopt
a policy that will be consistent with operational needs. FBIS, as an
overt organization, should not be in a position where it needs to make
either a formal declaration to all its FN's that it is part of a larger
intelligence organization or, on the other hand, be forced to keep it a
secret from them." Directorate management concurred in the FBIS position.
2. As many of you will recall, this subject was discussed at a
bureau chiefs conference in the spring of 1980. It was decided that
bureau chiefs would be left to their own discretion as to how much was to
be told to foreign national employees about the CIA affiliation,
dependent on local operational conditions. It was noted that it is not a
lie to state that foreign national employees are working for the Foreign
Broadcast Information Service. It is the belief of many bureau chiefs
that foreign national employees, even though they may be told or
informally learn of FBIS' affiliation with the Agency, prefer the ability
to make "plausible denial" as to their knowledge of FBIS affiliation with
CIA.
All portions are SECRET
(:ZRr. P PT
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t rL
SUBJECT: Identification of Foreign National Employees with CIA
3. It is therefore F$IS policy to give bureau chiefs discretion in
informing foreign national employees about the CIA affiliation. It is
not a secret, of course. At the same time, we do not advertise our
affiliation when operating abroad. Bureau chiefs may use their own
judgment as to how much they care to impart to a prospective employee, or
an employee on duty. It may be quite sufficient to state that the
employee will be working with the Foreign Broadcast Information Service,
which is administratively connected with a larger intelligence organiza-
tion, serves all elements of the U.S. foreign affairs community, and
receives directives from the National Security Council. In many cases it
will be sufficient to state that FBIS collects information from foreign
media for the U.S. Government and operates as part of the U.S. mission.
If the employee is notified of the CIA connection, he/she should be
warned that this is not to be discussed publicly.
JDChandlee:nl
Distribution:
- Chief, Abidjan Bureau
Chief, Austria Bureau
Chief, Bangkok Bureau
Chief, Gulf Bureau
Chief, Hong Kong Bureau
Chief, Jordan Bureau
Chief, Key West Bureau
Chief, London Bureau
Chief, Nicosia Bureau
Chief, Okinawa Bureau
Chief, Panama Bureau
Chief, Paraguay Bureau
Chief, Seoul Bureau
Chief, Swaziland Bureau
Chief, Tel Aviv Bureau
Chief, Antwerp S$T Unit
2 - C/Ops
1 - IG Inspection file
1 - D/FBIS Chrono
1 - JDC Corres file
1 - MIQ file
1 - FBIS Registry
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FBIS NOTICE MANAGEMENT
12 August 1985 N 7-14
SUBJECT: Identification of Foreign National Employees With the Agency
1. The identification of foreign national employees with the Agency
is obviously a sensitive matter, of particular concern to the foreign
national employee. All foreign national employees sign application forms
and papers indicating they are employees of the Foreign Broadcast
Information Service. The FBIS performs the function for the U.S.
Government of monitoring foreign media for information of interest. The
foreign national employee is hired to assist in this function, not to
engage in other intelligence collection activities.
2. The FBIS policy on notification to foreign national applicants
or employees of the FBIS-Agency affiliation is as follows:
a. FBIS bureau chiefs or recruiters may informally advise
applicants or employees of the FBIS-Agency connection if, in their
own discretion, it is operationally suitable to do so. FBIS must
guard against creating embarrassment or problems for our
ambassadors, the host governments, and our foreign national
employees.
b. It may be presumed that foreign national employees will
learn informally from their supervisors and/or colleagues of the
FBIS-Agency affiliation, which is public knowledge in the United
States.
c. When appropriate, bureau chiefs and supervisors should
caution foreign national employees not to publicly discuss the
FBIS-Agency affiliation; it would not be in their interest, nor
the interest of FBIS, for them to do so.
d. In most instances it may be quite sufficient for bureau
chiefs and supervisors to stress the functions of FBIS and the
fact that it serves all elements of the U.S. foreign affairs
community.
CONFIDENTIAL
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FBIS NOTICE MANAGEMENT
12 August-1985 7-14
SUBJECT: Identification of Foreign National Employees With the Agency
e. If pressed, bureau chiefs are authorized to tell foreign
national employees of the Agency affiliation, stressing that the
FBIS collection function at its bureaus has no connection with
other Agency activities. They should be cautioned not to discuss
this further with non-FBIS people.
f. Bureau chiefs should keep in mind that many foreign national
employees would prefer not to be foorrmalll notified of the FBIS-Agency
connection, in order to allow them the ability to deny such
knowledge. Hence the preference for informal advisement.
3. Bureau chiefs should carefully consider their operational
situation with regard to the Mission and the host government in applying
the above. We cannot deny the FBIS-Agency affiliation, but neither do we
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