HARVARD CRIMSON SPENCE STATEMENT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP89G00720R000600620013-3
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 11, 2011
• Sequence Number: 13
• Publication Date: October 11, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

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// Oct 1985
Following are the text of Dean of the
Faculty A. Michael Spence's
statement on this week's CIA funded
conference and the text of a letter
jrow Professor Nadav Safran to The
Crimson. Both were received Friday.
Spence Statement
This statement concerns the cir-
cumstances surrounding the con-
ference on "Islam and Politics in the
Contemporary Muslim World" to be
held at the Center for Middle Eastern
Studies next week. On October 2, 1
received a letter from Professor
'vadas Safran informing me of the
conference, and I became concerned
that the manner of sponsorship-
specifically that Professor Safran ssas
to receive 545,700 through a personal
contract from the central Intelligence
Agency svl;icl; he in turn would pass
on to the CT1ES-111ight conflict v itl;
several important University policies
associated ssith support for research
and similar activities, such as con-
fercnces. Chief among my concerns
ssas the posssible appearance of an
effort to conceal the intial source of
funding for tl;e conference.
On October 9, I met svitl; Professor
Safran and asked for his written
response to a number of questions.
\Ithougl; it is he ssh?o is personally
eceicing the funds from the sponsor,
the conterence utilizes Harvard's
I should emphasize here that the fact
that the CIA is the sponsor of the
conference is not an issue. The
Univeristy has no prohibition on
accepting sponsored-project support
form any government agency as long
as the terms and conditions
associated svitl; the support are
consistent with policies established to
protect academic freedom and in-
stitutional priorities. I will ask for a
full accounting of the costs of tl;e
conference so that the University can
be assured that all the costs, including
indirect costs, are identified and
funded appropriately.
A.Micl;ael Spence
Dean of the Faculty
of Arts & Sciences
Harvard University
*1 draw your attention to the
Report of the Committee on
Relationships between tl;e Harvard
Community and United states In-
tellligence Agencies, May 1977,
svhicl; was appro ed by the President
of Harvard. That report recommends
that "Harvard may enter into
research contracts with tile CIA
provided that such contracts conform
with Harvard's normal rules
governing contracting with outside
sponsors and that the existence of a
contract is made public by University
officials.''
name and facilities. T I;creforc, I take
the s icss that the funds are in effect a
gr,uu to the institution, and that our
normal policies apply.
P, ')lessor Saran has responded to
ntc inquiries and assured me that he is
under no obligation to conceal the
,tin tat source of funds, tl;at the
conceptual Ilanlcssork and content of
tic confer encc ss crc developed by l;int
ss II, no more than the usual advisor
inicraction ssitl, tic sponsor, that the
faller, to he discussed at the
Coll- ac currently publicly
asail,ihle oil rcserse in lie Harvard
ollcgc I ihrar\, and Il,at he is free to
uul intends to publish tie results of
,,,c conlcrcnce.
I'rnicssor Safran r\pininttl that is
I:riot lot slructtn ing tl,e funding as
c did ssas to avoid ssl -al Ise beliescd
1s etc C\c-l) C e()sts tlsslocialC(I ss it I;
losing II c pi oposaI ii roil gI tl;e
i lopcr l nicer its ci.annck.
13ascd on IhC abosc, I Lane
Coil-tided that I'rofess()r Safran erred in
not Iollossinn the Iclesanl rules in
cgard to sponsored projects, and I
eliesr he agrees \sitl; that con-
cision. He has told me he plans to
I?tornl all Il,e participants of the
out cc of Ilntding. Witt; that un-
Ici i;oidilig, I Lase concluded that
he conference should proceed
secatisc the sponsor can he disclosed
tublicls and because tic project does
lot appear to hair been suhiccl to
nannronriate terms and conditions.*
Safran Letter
The following letter to The
Crimson was dated Thursday, the
same day the newspaper run its initial
account of Professor Safran's
handling of CIA funds for next
week's Center for Middle Eastern
Studies (CMES) conference.
Tl;e Editor
The Harvard Crimson
Dear kids:
Vs hen ss ill you grow up?
I tried, against the odds of' Illy past
experience, to put before your
reporter a simple proposition:
(1) I conceived an interest inn idea
for a C\lES conference about an
iniellcctualls compelling subject.
(2) As (\MES proccded sill- tl,c
ple)aralions, I sought and obtained
funds Pont rIlse CIA, as an -in-
dcipciden; contractor'' 111.1,1. ssould
permit rite to reinlhurse ( \11 S for
t he expenses incurred hr 11.
that simple proposition twee
cattle act 055 ill sour doer-instead,
here sins the usual dose of nlisin-
tollnation, sensationalism, in-
nuendos, etc.
Hass fun, children.
lours sincerely,
Nad;is Sat nit
Director, (enter for
\l iddle Eastern Studies
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The Harvard. Crimson
CAMBRIDGE, MASS., SATURDAY, OCTOBER 12,1985
"Prof Gave CIA Censorship Rights on Book
Spence Rules ?Safran May Have Violated
On 1st Grant Harvard Research Principles
By CHRISTOPHER J. GEORGES
and MICHAEL W. HIRSCHORN
Dean of the Faculty A. Michael
Spence said yesterday that
Director of the Center for Middle
Eastern Studies Nadav Safran
"erred" and violated University
regulations in failing to report a
$45,700 grant he received from
the Central Intelligence Agency
last spring.
"I have concluded the t
Professor Safran erred in not
following the relevant rules in
regard to sponsored projects, and
believe that he agrees with this
conclusion," Spence said in a
K Ktaiernent released late yesterday
rnoon.
Safran accepted the grant to
(continued on page 6)
By CHRISTOPHER J. GEORGES and MICHAEL W. HIRSCHORN
In what may be a violation of longstanding University. policy, a
Harvard professor gave the Central Intelligence Agency the right to
preview and censor a book on Saudi Arabia after receiving a $107,430
CIA grant to help finance his research, according to documents ob-
tained by The Crimson.
The documents include a CIA contract dated May 7, 1982, in which
Nadav Safran, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies,
signed an agreement "to reserve the Government's right to review and
approve any and all intended publications resulting from Agency-
funded research efforts."
Safran's work, entitled "Saudi Arabia: The Ceaseless Quest for
Security," was published last month by Harvard University Press.
According to longstanding policies designed to protect the freedom
of academic research, Harvard as an institution refuses all contracts
which would allow a prospective sponsor the right to edit or censor
research results before they are published.
Harvard has been unusually vigorous, especially in recent years, in
fighting attempts by government funding sources which have proposed
classifying or otherwise altering research by University affiliates.
(continued on page 6)
CONTRACT. 0111C[R
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Profsaeor /achy lafraa
198 Dean load
I.& wow t.
Idward J. O'Connell
Post Office lox 2031
Mata Post Office
Washington, D. C..20013
Above and below are excerpts from contracts between the Central Intelligence Agency and Harvard
professor Nadav Safran. The spring 1982 contracts, copies of which were obtained by The Crimson,
show that in receiving a $107,430 research grant for a book on the Middle East, Safran granted the
CIA the right to review and censor the'manuscript in possible violation of University research rules.
Contract No. 8: -97.+1 00.000
Amendment b. I
0. C1awo R. Profsriorrt P b+esti r
Clause It of the subject contrast 18 consistent with standard Agency
practice to reserve the COW-t's rl/bt to review and approve any and all
Intended publtatiow rwaltlag frees Agney-No ed research sffbrta.
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Spence Rules on First Grant
(continued from page 1)
fund a conference set for next week
on Islam and Muslim politics and
sponsored by the Center for Middle
Eastern Sudies.
Spence said that the conference
should proceed as planned provided
that Safran inform all participants of
the source of the funding.
Safran, Albertson Professor of
Middle Eastern Studies in the
Government Department, said earlier
.But Spence said he will request a
"full accounting of the costs of the
conference so that the University call
be assured that all the costs, including
indirect costs, are identified and
funded appropriately."
While Safran said on Thursday
that he "was at fault in not informing
the University that we are holding the
conference," he added that "there is
no attempt to cheat the University out
of any money, but it is a convenient
way of getting funding for the center
with no strings attached."
Safran said he informed the
University of the source of the
conference's funding last month.
But officials with the office of
Sponsored Research said earlier this
week that they have no record of any
communication from Safran in-
forming them of the CIA conference
grant. And Spence said in his
statement that he first heard of the
conference on October 2, when he
received a letter from Safran.
Harvard officials said that the fact
of CIA sponsorship was not of
unusual concern, since the CIA is one
this week that he avoided paying
Harvard a percentage of the $45,700
CIA grant because he received the
grant "as an individual" and not on
behalf of the Center for Middle
Eastern Studies.
"I did not do it through the center
because of the 60 percent... and
because of all the red tape," Safran
said earlier this week.
The 60 percent figure refers to the
66 percent surcharge the faculty tacks
onto portions of research contracts
with outside sponsors.
The money is used to pay for in-
direct costs, which: include use of
Harvard facilities, depreciation on
buildings and equipment, and interest
on borrowed funds.
Faculty rules requires professors to
pay Harvard for these indirect costs,
which generally amount to about 40
percent of the total sponsored
research contract, according to
Candance Corvey, director of the
Office for Sponsored Research.
"Although it is he [Safran] who is
personally receiving the funds from
the sponsor, the conference utilizes
Harvard's name and facilities.
Therefore I take the view that the
funds are in effect a grant to the
institution, and that our normal
policies apply," Spence said.
The Spence statement does not
mention any punishment against
Safran for violating University
euidelines, and it is unclear what kind
of disciplinary action, if any, Spence
could have taken against the
professor.
The letter did not make reference
to reports in The Crimson and The
Boston Globe yesterday d,at Safran
two years ago accepted another CIA
grant totalling $107,430 to help
research a book on Saudi Arabia.
The book, published last month by
Harvard University Press, mentioned
two other sources of funding but not
the CIA.
And according to documents
obtained yesterday by The Crimson,
Safran granted the CIA the right to
preview and censor his research on
Saudi Arabia before it was published
(see story page one).
Spence's statement did not say
whether the dean has now concluded
his investigation of Safran. But Vice
President ? for Government and
Community Affairs John Shattuck
said the $107,430 grant "is and will
be a subject of an inquiry that Dean
Spence is conducting."
Though Spence's letter implies that
Safran will have to pay Harvard a
portion of the $45,700 grant, it does
not explicitly say whether he asked
Safran to pay the University any
money.
of numerous federal agencies which
grant Harvard millions of dollars in
research, money each year.
"The University has no prohibition
on accepting sponsored-project
support from any government agency
as long as the terms and conditions
associated with the support are
consistent with policies established to
protect academic freedom and in-
stitutional priorities," Spence said.
The CIA sponsored conference,
scheduled for the Faculty Club next
Tuesday and Wednesday, will draw
about 90 prominent 1liddle Fa~tern
scholars from around the world. The
conference will be off-the-record and
closed to the public, but the results of
the meeting will eventually be
published, Safran said.
Spence also said that papers which
will be discussed at the conference are
currently on reserve in the Harvard
College Library.
Crimson Files Complaint
Against Professor Safran
The Crimson yesterday filed a
formal protest with the University
charging that,Nadav Safran, director
of Harvard's Center for Middle
Eastern Studies, threatened and
'abused a Crimson editor.
Safran reportedly told Executive
Editor Christopher J. Georges '86
three times Thursday night, "I will
kick your butt." Georges was in-
total of about $150,000 in
from the CIA.
A. Michael Spence, dean
Faculty of Arts and Sciences,
yesterday 'acknowledged the com-
plaint and said he would issue a
response to The Crimson.
Safran refused comment last night.
Crimson President Jeffrey A.
Zucker '86 refused
vestigating Safran's_.handling of.--;j,- yesterday.
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Safran May Have Violated Policy
(continued from page 1) degree to which Safran's research was
As opposed to restrictions against conducted "under the aegis of
controls on research accepted by Harvard University." Also left open
Harvard as an institution, University is the question of whether Safran was
guidelines do not prohibit pre- aware of the seeming conflict bet-
publication review of contracts ween his contractual agreement and
between government agencies and University policy.
individual professors. Though it is unclear what type and
However, Vice President for degree of research might constitute
Government and Community Affairs work done under "the aegis" of the
John Shattuck, who has led Harvard University, it is clear that at least
lobbying efforts against proposed some portion of the work was
government controls, said yesterday conducted on Harvard property and
that the University does not approve by aides paid out of University
of pre-publication review in "a coffers.
contract with a researcher who is Gary Samore, a former graduate
doing research under the aegis of student credited by Safran in the
Harvard University." book's preface, said he was paid by
At least a portion of the research
for Safran's book was conducted at
Harvard, and one researcher who
worked on the book for more than
three yeas told The Crimson that his
salary was paid by Harvard for part
of that time.
Shattuck said he was unfamiliar
with the May 7, 1982 document
obtained by The Crimson, and would
not comment on the propriety of
Safran's contract with the CIA.
The book contract "is and will be a
subject of an inquiry that Dean
Spence is conducting," Shattuck
said, referring to an ongoing in-
,estigation by A. Michael Spence,
dean of the Faculty of Arts and
Sciences.
Spence could not be reached
yesterday for comment on the
5107,430 CIA research grant. But in a
statement yesterday, Spence said than
Safran had "erred" in failing to
report to Harvard officials a separate
CIA-grant for $45,700 which Safran
received for a conference next week
on Middle Eastern politics. (see
accompan-ving story)
While Safran has acknowledged
receiving the CIA grant for the
conference, he has declined to discuss
the CIA grant for the book. The
book's preface notes two funding
sources-the Rockefeller Foundation
and the Rand Corporation-but does
not mention the CIA grant.
Asked last night to address whether
he violated Harvard guidelines in
granting the CIA pre-publication
review rights, Safran said he would
not comment to The Crimson because
"I do not trust you to report me
accurately." Safran said he would
charge The Crimson with harassment'
and would call the police if the
newspaper persisted in seeking
comment from him.
CIA spokesmen have refused to
comment on or even confirm either
grant to Safran.
Though one source familiar with
the book said there was no reason to
believe that the CIA had altered
Safran's manuscript, it could not be
determined yesterday whether the
CIA had in fact exercised its con-
Harvard during the time he worked
as a research assistant for Safran's
book.
(Samore was quoted in yesterday's
Crimson as saying he was unaware
that Safran's research was being
funded by the CIA. He said
yesterday, however, that he was
aware of the CIA grant, calling his
previous statment the result of a
misunderstanding.)
In addition, Safran's original April
13, 1982 contract with the CIA, a
copy of which was obtained by The
Crimson, specified that "the prin-
cipal place of perfomance shall be the
contractor's [Safran's] facility
located at Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts."
In an amendment to the April 13,
1982 contract dated May 7, 1982, the
clause specifying location was
changed to include Safran's home
address: "This clause is modified to
reflect that the contractor's home
office, in Brookline, Massachusetts
and his office at Harvard University,
Cambridge, Massachusetts will be the
principal places of performance."
The latter document does not
mention the CIA, referring only to
the "Agency" and the "Govern-
ment." The document is signed by an
administrative contracting officer
and the return address is a post office
box in Washington, D.C.
However, the document bears the
same contract number as the original
Dean of the Division of Applied
Sciences Paul C. Martin '52, a
member of the committee which
monitors faculty adherence to
Harvard research principles, said
when read passages from the CIA
book contract last night that he could
not tell if Safran's work violated
University guidelines on conflict of
interest for sponsored research.
One of those principles which
appears to pertain to Safran's book
contract was established by the
Faculty of Arts and Sciences in 1970.
it reads:"...a co-author of a paper
might have professional com-
mitments which require prior
clearance with his employer before
submission for publication. A
Harvard scholar could accept this
personally as a condition of his co-
authorship without violating this
provision.
"On the other hand," the
document continues, "a provision in
a research agreement which required
as a matter of legal right that prior
permission for publication be secured
from a sponsor would be unac-
ceptable."
The section concludes: "The in-
dividual may, at his own discretion,.
accept conditions from collaborators
which the University should not agree
to in its institutional capacity. In such
an instance, however, the individual
may find it desirable to consult with
his Department Chairman or Dean
on the appropriateness of his
agreeing to such conditions."
Professor of Government John D.
Montgomery, the Department's
chairman at the time Safran signed
the contract, said Safran did not tell
him or ask his approval before
signing the CIA contract.
Geyser University Professor Henry
Rosovsky, who was dean of the
Faculty of Arts and Sciences at the'
night refused to comment on the
matter.
Aware?
Beyond the question of whether
Safran's individual acceptance of a
CIA contract including pre-
publication rights might have
violated Harvard rules, it could not
be determined for certain whether
Safran was aware of the University
April 13 agreement, which notes
clearly that the contract was prepared
by the CIA.
It is unclear whether the contract's
mention of Harvard University as a
location for the research and
Samore's receipt of a Harvard salary
for work on the Safran book means
that Safran's work comes under
University guidelines.
Officials at the Office for Spon-
sored Research, which catalogues
government contracts conducted
through the University, said they had
no record of Safran's May 17, 1982
contract with the CIA.
However, Patricia Benfari, an
official in the office, said professors
are not necessarily expected to tell the
office about individual contracts with
government agencies. Another of-
ficial said that contracts for books do
not fall under the purview of the
sponsored research officials.
tractual rights to review or change
any portion of Safran's book.
Among the issues left unresolved in
light of revelations about CIA
fundiro fnr Safran's book is the
rules to begin with.
Joel Goodfader, a
trepreneur and businessman who said
he worked on the book for Safran
during the winter and spring of 1983,
said he saw a copy of the contract
granting the CIA pre-publication
review rights.
"I had access to that document and
saw it," Goodfader said in an in-
terview yesterday. "It looked like a
standard contract."
Goodfader, who said Saf?an paid
him out of personal funds and not
out of Harvard accounts, said he
does not believe that Safran
"willfully" violated University
guidelines. He said he does
believe Safran had read "the
print" in the CIA contract.
not
fine
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