Office of the Historian

65. Memorandum From the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs (Rowan) to the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs (Johnson)1

Washington, February 16, 1962.

Attached is a proposed State-Defense-USIA message to Embassy Saigon (responding to their 1013 of Feb. 6)2 in which detailed guide lines are spelled out for handling newsmen there covering the military strife.

It is the view of this Bureau, of USIA, of Mr. Sylvester in Defense and of Mr. Cottrell of Task Force Viet-Nam that press problems in Saigon are of the greatest importance, and that detailed instructions for dealing with correspondents are urgently needed.

Mr. Sylvester makes the point that our major problem arises from the fact that military leaders in Viet-Nam are straining to get out from under Embassy control and deal with the press as they see fit. Significantly, Governor Harriman has pointed to this same problem. Thus I raise the question of whether the instructions to military commanders in paragraph four of the proposed telegram are worded too diplomatically.

Mr. Sylvester, Mr. Cottrell and Mr. Manning each has made independently the observation that the military operation in Viet-Nam is large enough, and the press problems and implications important enough, to deserve the full-time attention of a top-flight information man.

I recommend that prompt attention be given to the proposal that we get a savvy individual who is skilled at dealing with newsmen and assign him to this job. This in itself would go far to show our desire to co-operate with newsmen. Such an individual should have the confidence of Washington to the extent that he would receive the same information given to Ambassador Nolting and General Harkins. He would maintain frequent contact with Washington so as to ascertain any policy shifts, or to be apprised of any informational or propaganda problems growing out of the Viet-Nam operation.

  1. Source: Washington National Records Center, RG 306, USIA/I/S Files: FRC 68 A 4933, Field: Far East (IAF), 1962. Confidential. This memorandum is part of a package that included a memorandum of February 19 from Rowan to Rusk, Johnson, and Manning in the Department of State, Bundy and Salinger at the White House, and Wilson in USIA, enclosing a draft telegram that was to be considered at the Honolulu Conference of February 19; and that was dispatched with indicated changes as telegram 1006 to Saigon (Document 75); the memorandum of February 15 from Rowan to Johnson (Document 62); and a chit of February 15 from Rowan to Murrow transmitting the latter, with a handwritten note by Murrow to Wilson indicating that he agreed with Rowan.↩
  2. Document 48.↩