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FOR! Director of CentralDirector for Pleas
of Radio Free Europe) and Radio Liberty UnderNew Administration
for your pose Ible uae la tha pa par you roqueetodforth the cage for the retentloa of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty, and recommending reaumption of their covertby CIA. Thla paper reviews briefly tbetatua of the radioa aince the Katxenbach guideline* were announced, and outline* tha problems the new administration will faca in determining either tbe continuation or termination of the two organisational
Accompanying the paper arahich giveinformation on tha radioa, additional efzectiveneea llama, and some diroanalona of the. problem they present.
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EUROPE, PJC. AND RADIO IJBEKTY COMMITTEE, INC.
Background of tha Problem
Radio liberty and Radio Tree Europe have been the CIA'send moat aucceeafnl covert action project* inreak the commnnjat monopoly on news and Information In thaand Eastern Europe. Originallyolitical actionto mobilise th* post-war smigrat . Eastern Europe andUnion aa an effective opposition, tbe parent organisations ofradios hare long sine* turned virtuallyto broad-
casting. Their prlmarymlaaion haato conduct radio broadcasting IntoUSSR and EasternEurope and In doing so their broadcast* hav* evolved In atep with th* dcr*lopment of. pollcia* towardears the two radiosinanced, non-profitAmericancorporations. Butdurlng that time their fond* hare largely been provided endpolicy controlled by CIA.
Radio Pre* Europe (RFE) ha* been la operationbroadcast*ay to Poland. Hungaryay to Romania,ay to Bulgaria. Ith* principalofbody,Europe. Inc. *
locatedorkCIty, which alaoEnat Ihurop* mag* sin* and other publications, support*uropean emigr** book mailing program* Into Eastern Europe, and facilitate*ontact*. General Lucfv* D. Clay is chair ma* of th* board of director* of Free Europe.he president la William P. Durkee. Other members of th* board include Crawford H. Greencwalt. RoswellL. Clip*trie, Michael H. Haider, UTingsnd Robert D. Murphy. . Roche, chairman of General Motor* Corporation, ha* accepted the chairmanship of Radio Free Europe Fundhafund-ral*ing arm ofInc. (Seef board member*).
RFE'* programming headquarter* ar* located In Munich,with tranamlttcr* In Blbli* and Holaklrchen, Germany, and in Gloria,
. The facllitla* are Ucenaed by the hoat countries under agreeentered Into directly by RFErivate corporation, andlnterce**lonor official acknowledgement of eupport by. RFE ia operating in Portugal on the bael*nd la Germanyear-to-year,
RFE'e broadcaat* carefully avoid provocative position* orinflamma-(oryappaala, aad In line with guideline! approved by the State Department aretha target audience with (actual reporting andcommentary that cannot be attributed to an official government,eople and9 budget,orRFE. Of the total7 million waa rale ad by RFEF, Inc.
Radio Libertyaa beenbroadcaatlng to the Sovietnd tranamltaay InRuaalaa,ay in Ukrainian, and loeear amounts in IS othar languagaa of the USSR. Radio liberty Committee, Inc.ho parent body located in New York City, aleopons-;the Institute for the Study of the USSR In Munich, conduct* tha Agency's largestbookmalliag program to tha USSR, androgram for providing Latin American preae and radio with journalistic material on commuaUm developed by RL. The president of RLC ia Howland H. Sargeaat, and ltanclud* Generalonth* r, Peiter Grace, Jr. aad Whitney Seymour (Seeor full liat of board mambersj,
RL'a programming headquarter* are alaoIn Munich, with traaamittera la Lampartheim, Germany.a, Spein, and Pa Li, Taiwan. RL'* license agreement with tha Wast Girmu Govarnment la valid Although tha Weat Oerman* have tha option of ter mine ting the agraamaat earliar, tbalr ralatioa* with RLxtremely good and Itot expected that they will exercise) thie option. Tha radio'* Speaiehliceneewaa granted forear* onnd it* Taiwanoaa not expire until RL'a broadcaatlng guldellnae. Ilkare coordinated by CIA with tha State Department, and are Intended to exploit domestic Soviet topic*ay denied to offTie Radio Libertyeople and"9, ofa for RL. '
Because RFE and RLdidnot represent aeloarf CIAwith American private voluntary organlaationa. aadbecauae they have boenof *uch Importance to the Agency's covartactlon effort for ao long. Secretaryecided that the radioa fell outaldo the purview of the RuakCommlttee, appointed by.Proeideot Jcfcnaon to review overtfundlngfor tho "CIA orphane" after theof many ofovert action project* Secretarythat consideration of tha radio*'future be undertaken byommittoa. Aftarinter-agency review of th*poratlone and of
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numtrouitheir future, tbe Director of Central Intelligenceauthor Lted by tbe Preeldent to approach key congre**ional leader* to determine their opinion* toward continuation or termination of theheonal leader* consulted ware: Senator RichardB. Ruasell, Sanator Milton R.tativa Clenard P. Lipscomb,George H. Mahon, and Representative Frank T. Bow. They unanirnoualycontinuation of these activities and their view* wore transmitted to tha Secretary of State and the White Houae. On the baal* ofiew* from theommittee recommended, and President Johnaon affirmed, an Interim solutloa that provided the radio* with fund* sufficient for them to operate at exiating level* through
RFE *nda thuaump
n Thi* arrangemont technicallyCIA'* financial ralatlonehlp with tha radio* In compliance with the Katseobach Committoa doctrine that all covert aid to private, voluntary organlxatiooa ahould caaee bynd left open the way to future reaumptlon by the Agoncy of covert financial responsibility ahould thiadecidedew Administration. In practice, and as requested byommittee, tha Agency baalta policy control over th* radioa elnc* the lump aum payment* war* made.
While no provision waa mad* for0h* thruat ofecommendationatrongly toward continuation. ecision on th* continuation of the radioa aftarnd on tha fntur* aourc* of government financing, mustmade at thepoaalbl* data.
2. An Appralaal of Effectivcneaa
A. RFE
There la an abundance of teetlmony to RFE'*a* an Important factor in the life of Enetern Europe. It coma* to u* from regime loader* aa woll aa. officiatela the targetand ia supported bydata gathered by USIA and by RFE Iteelf, ahowing RFE to b* th*idelyeta don in Eastern Europe (Seeor audience research ctudlc*). Thi* would auggeet that
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urgsnt needs of th* majority of th* population of thus* countrlaa which ar* not and, as tho result of domestic political conditions, cannot ha satisfied by tholr home radio station* and censored pros*.
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During the historic spring and surnrserFE'* audience in Poland, Hungary and Romania reached an all-time high, as people listened to the radio for new* of developments in Caechoelovahia, denied to them by their own madia. In Chechoslovakiaprimarily because of th* freedom accorded domestic media by the Dubcek regime, th* RFE audienc* declined temporarily. But afterugust, -and particularly after-the claadaatin* Csech radios encountered*difficulty in obtaining-nde-quate information and maintaining consistent service. thetoward RFE, and its6 audience research poll showed that listenershlpSeeor research poll).
In this crisis period, RFE informed its Czechoslovak audience ot the world's Indignation at the Invasion, Including the criticism expressed by Romania and Yugoslavia andajority of the Western conamunist parties. Th* regular broadcasting schedule waatoay, with news broadcastshalf-hour.
Th* Impact of the radio on the Czechoslovak peopl* (Seeor Csech eUtemeats) during th* crisis impressed AmbassiLdor Beam to each extent thatd onctober that "they ar* doinglao noted that Radio Prague had relied on RFE'e coverage of the Olympics in Mexico City rather than original* Its own programming.
Former Ambassador Cronouskl cabled from Warsaw in8 during the student demon*trattone that a* muchercent of tha student popular!an followod RFE for news of the riots, particularly in quest of Information from other part* of the country, and that the new* broadcast* were "especially appreciated by th* Polish audience. " Another Warsaw report stated that many Polesfull of prats* for RFE'* coverage of th*noting particularly that RFE broadcast* obliged the Polish media to react hastily In their own news
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with considerable ramblingto pre Mat their
Taraloa of tha facta.
Air.baaaador Hillenbrand laeported that RFE haa unquestionably furniahad It* Hungarian audience with mora, and mora timely. Information on tha Polish riots and tha Czechoslovak altuation than did tha local madia. Fartherreceived from tha Embassy In Budapest indicates that RFE'* appeal aeems to be Increasing in Hungary, and that despite the regime's displeasure, Hungarian officials listen to It regularly and probably qee itunge of public sentiment and reactions.
of the most valuable servicee that RFE performs for
Its target audience is that of crose-reporting news from other European countrlaa that Is suppressed by regime media. Thus. RFE faaa been able to tell Its Polish, Romanian. Hungarian and Bulgarian listeners aboute re lis* nlan program from the fall of Hovotny to the praeent day, Llkewiss, CceehoslovaJdnas, Bulgarians, Hungarians and Romanians heard details of the Polish student demonstration that they eeuld not possibly have learned from regime organs, Yugoslav develop-meate, tbe lode pendent moral of Romania, all those are Immediately made available to the other Bloc countries by RFE.
Testimony to the efficacy of radio la general--and RFErecently Into Secretaryto. diplomatic missions for suggestion*way* for the United State* to call attentioa to It*the Pari* talks with North Vietnam. Ambassadorthat th* official media of th* countries of Easternoffset by wideapread Us toning to foreign broadcastsattention be given to pub-
licising. position on RFE and VOA. The Embassy in Warsaw reported thatpect to th* Polish public,. broadcast media--which aura the moat effective means of reaching broad element* of the Polisho aid continue full factual coverage of tha Paris talks and other davelopmenta relating to Vietnam." (Seeor official documents)
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b. io Liberty
Replyingertm*al reoueatvaluation ofbei ty Inmbaaaador Llewellyn Thorn pa oo raeornxnandad that RL.continueda ration. Noting that RL. broad caeta ara haaviiy jammed, ha *ald that a* e* pi fa thla Lntor'eronca lt haa baan able to hold on to an audience. Kaalao pointed out that Jamming operatloaa tieiet raeourcea and entail coata, which, together with tha impact of tha broad-casta on tbe population, might tnaka it posetble for the United States Government to use eventual cassationbroadcast* aa an tndiract bargaining counterater data. Ambaassdor Thompson said that tha political climate at that time was not suitable fornilateral concoaaioa. (Seeor Thompson cable) Sinceha armoephore haseharpiy. Tha USSR haa intone if led its jamming ofesumed jamming of VGA and other Westernejected an. proteet on this eofaject, aadrotest of it* own over th* printingollection of Soviet protest document* in1'roblems of Comnm.-ilein.
eaction to tha nine-moo ih Caechoalovak lafarlude aad th* aubsoouant Invasion ha* bean to encourage, prior to tha
a crial* of conGfionc* In th* Soviet lasdorardp's Judgment aad Intentions, and afterwarda to arousa appxahaasloa over the leadermisreading and brutal hand ling of tha Caechoalovak situation, and to Inculcate doubt aa to the rationality of CPSU policy-making in tima* oftress. cWiavaaioa, RL pressed Into service iu previouslyon* thouaand-kilowatt (megawatt) traasmlttar, and th* Moscow Embaaay haa reported that ite monitoring Indicate* that this signal can mora than hold itsain at (be previously impenetrable groundwav* Jamming ia tha metropolitan Mo*cow -area where th* *llteudience live*. (Seekm* monitoring and Erobaaay.report*)
In the USSR Intellectual turmoil ha* begun to verge on politicaland RL. ba* been particular lyw*ll-suited to reapond to thi* development. Aboutercent of au'euipoinas focused oa the** rea*. Among other things. It ha* broadcast the teat* of virtually every on* of the aceree of Soviet protestom*thing VGA baareluctant to da
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ofofficial status, aad frequently- has read thamdictation spaed no thatan be copied by lietenere for further die semination iaeld* the USSR (Seaor audiaaca research report). In the fall and winter, RLentrated heavilyporting Soviet persacotlon of Ukrainian nationalist Intellectuals, and aerloue youth problems in Georgia and Moldavia. Immedlauly afterward, inhe Ukrainian Party Secretary responsible for Ideological and cultural affairs was demoted, and Radio Kiev wee obligad topecial interview with an official of tha prosecutor's office to answer listeners' queries which, according to the broadcaat, stemmed from the "noisycreated by foreign press aad radio about the trlala of Ukrainian(Seeor full report).
There has neverirm basis on which to estimate the sine of aL'i audlsnce. But several indicators of RL's relative standing are available. It is known, for instance, that even without the megawatt transmitter RL-'s signal was capable of gaographically covering, at rerioue timeo,ercent of tbe USSR's territory, fromnalysis of lta listener letters and from interviews with listeners who travel abroad, it is fairly clear. looms as one of the thro* or four most important stations broadcasting to the USSR, along with VOX and BBC, and that it probably rank* in popularity immediately behind these two stations. It is clear aloe that RL iafor what itpolitical" stationoliticaland that therefor* most of its audlenc* i* probably listening throughrather than by accident. It i* *vident from this that RL is not so much la"competition with VOA or BBC as it Isto their efforts, and that because RL offer* adistinctive product it is sought outife rent reasons by many of the same paopl* who also Us ton tostations.
A number of Indications of RL's impact are derived from audience responses and regime reaction*. Several mail tests hav* shown that only about one latter in thirtyLfrom inside th* USSR. Despite thisRListener letters, and additionally inter -view*isteners who arrive In th* West a* lags!travelers
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*ad refugee*. Aft*rtwo-yearSovietall
that affected alln radioa, tha rata cut mail flow to RL.6ercent higher than Last year aad mightreater Dumber of peopl*an lag than ever before. Idataner evideac* alao show* that in time* ofcrisis, RL'a audience alio rieaely. During th* period of Polish student dlatarbances andensions InL waa toldoviet literary critic that In"the straeta war* empty and quiet" because of peopl* listening to foreign radio and that "Radio Liberty enjoyed thesuccess. " Evidently because of its coverage of Eaet European developments and Soviet intellectual diesldeace, RL waa the object of more regime) in Just the first alx months8 than in any previous year. Moat of tbe attacks mad* reference to the radio's traatmont of these two aubjecta. finally. Sovietto Jam RL around the clock hav* continued unabatad1 whereas Jammlag of VQA waa discontinued3 aad only raeumed during the Invaalon of Caachoalovakla. or audience sla* data)
3.' Th* Outlook for th*ermination or Conl In gallon
Th* value of the radios aaaeseta baa bean affirmed -the years by every study group, official and private, thatItaelf to th* problem (Seear Radio Studyand th*rt report) lt haa been recognised by eachbody that RTE and,sseta larar* talent, speclallBed organisation aad base facilities,evelop. Once dlaperaad.
e**t* could beonly with Immense difficulty, if at all. In Itself thi* re pre* enowerful argument for continuing the operation.
If th* radio* areo *atl*factory nlter-native to th* reaumption of covert financing by CIA. If an attempt war* made to fund them openlyub lie-private mechanism orin* Item in th*udget,would be (abject to eatenclve debate each year, and lt wouldnecessary Inter ail* to publicly explain and defend tha more politically-chargedf RFE and RL aa distinct fromf VOA. Thi* would firmly fix th* Imag* of th* radio* a* official Instrument* of. Government, which, la turn would Jeopardlae their poe ldon In all their heat countries and preaaot thaegime* with an aeay rational* forth*m.
In light offoregoing.determinatione madeto whether the radios should be continued after9 sad, if so, whether they ehould be funded and controlled by CIA. There is no reason to .believe that additional staff review will facilitate that determination, or moke it any easier. The problem of what to do with RFE and HLhas been studied exhaustively and almost continuously for the last three years by soma of the most competent specialists In and outside the Government. Every conceivable aad reasonable altar-native has been explored, and additional options from which to choose are not likely to be developed. What Is required nowolicy decision based on value judgment, lt should be made at the earliest possible date to determine whether normal operations should continue In tor whether termination is to be undertaken.
Should continued covert CIA financing be deemed unacceptable the only alternative would be termination, with the transfer, where possible, of technical facilities, frequencies and personnel to VOA. However, the unique element of RFE and RL. broadcasts--detalled reporting and hard-hitting commentary on internal developments--could not be duplicated by VOA without substantial changes la VOA operating principles and risk of unacceptable diploxnatlc consequencas.
Termination st this particular timeIn the aftermath of the lnvaalon and occupation of Caechoalovakia--wouldignificant unilateral concession to th* Soviet Union and hardline Eaet European regimes. The absencelausible explanation for the ceaaatlon of broadcasting would suggest to the redlo audiences In the USSR and Essurn Europe that the United Ststss had lost interest in them. This would llkewias be interpreted by West Europeans a* another sign. disengagement from Europe, and might suggesteal had been struck with the Soviets.
Domestically, there are manyncluding large ethnic group* with closeto many of th* countries to which th* radio* broadcast, for whom cessation of broadcastingoat serious and Incomprehensible decision, especially in view of the occupation of Chechoslovakia. The attitude* of the ethnic group* would probably add algnlflcantly to the likelihood of adverse publicityon termination, and would lend themaelvea to local political exploitation. Strongly negative Congresaloaal reactions wereeocoun-teredwbenth* Director of Central inteUlgenc* dlecnased the possibility
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of termination with key memberof Congraia'lhumber of Congressmen are likely to enow, particular concaxn for the fate of RFC and RL because of their traditional reeponalveneea to the intereste of domestic European ethnic groups.
Termination would be neither cheap nor swift. It ia estimated that termination would require et leaatonth* and approximatelyillion dollar* for tha two radio*.
Recommendation
It i* recommended that the Central Intelligence Agency be anthorlced to reaume covert funding of FE,nd RLC,n0 under the "exception" provl*lon* of the Kataenbach Report, with the radio* continuing to function at *nbetnnt]ally* level ofa* inSeeox background on the problem of the funding legendecommended court* of action for handlingueries)
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Original document.
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