2. REFERENCE MY MEMORANDUM OF 23 OCTOBER 1962, COPY ATTACHED.

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP74-00115R000300020033-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 14, 2014
• Sequence Number: 33
• Publication Date: October 25, 1962
• Content Type: MEMO

STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2014/01/15:
CIARDP74-00115R000300020033-5
25 October 1962
MEMORANDUM FOR THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR
VIA: The Executive Director
1. This mommandimtis for information only.
2. Reference NI lailMOTIMENIft of 23 October 19620 copy attached. / had
a call today from Eugene Methvin of READER'S DIGEST, who said that be had
called up Pierre Salinger who told him, according to Metbvin, that the White
House would give every possible help to the READER'S DIGEST in this project
and Slinger would discuss it with me.
3. The DIGEST slates to do a blow-by-blow account of the final intelli-
gence phase that resulted in the President's establishing a quarantine around
Cuba. They visualize intelligence personnel through an airplane photograph
discovering MRBM sites, launchers, transport and other materiml which gives
the first indication of the threat to the Western world from Cuba vie Soviet
nuclear weapons. They wouldthen wish to carry out the intelligence process
insofar as that which maybe revealed in getting the intelligence and evalu-
ating it, and the DCI ;Tenanting it to the President. This would, of course,
include information on USIB and its functioning in the crisis, as well as
the President's executive council; provided, that they can gat cooperation
from, CIA, the White HMO, Defenses and State.
4. They will have John Hubell? a senior editor who is now in Washington,
doing the principal writing of the story, and Andy Jones, who is now attempt-
ing to have the Navy permit him to Co to the Caribbean with the fleet.
5. Their timetable would be to finish the first draft of the story by
20 November 1962 and to complete the story by 5 December so that it would go
to the printers by January and be printed in the February issue which goes on
the newsstands 25 January.
6. READER'S DIGEST has always cooperated with this Agency 011 many
stories and has never violated the confidence.
7. The general impression from the DIGEST story, Methvin said, will
be favorable. They want to do a story on intelligences the airplane, its
efficient cameras, the danger to the pilots, the discovery of the missile
sites, the White House conferences, the Defense Department background by
McNamara at his press conference, the Director's visits to the President,
when, who participated, who said what, the National Security Council rotating, etc.
8. While the favorable story is desirable, if CIA were to assist the
DIGEST in this manner, a precedent on publicity for intelligence would be
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2014/01/15:
CIA-RDP74-00115R000300020033-5
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2014/01/15:
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established) it would have a very happy immediate offset for the CIA and
the community, but it would have a very bad long-range effect in my opinion.
9. It is my opinion that we should decline to cooperate and thus
establish a precedent. If we do this far the DIGEST, where do we stop?
10. The DCI, informed of this request, and of calls by John Pinney of
the NNW IOU TINS, Bill Nines of the WASHINGTON STAR, Bob Donovan of the
MAIM TRIBUNE, and Id O'Brien of the 3T. LOUIS OLONE-DENOCRAT, said that
he would not se: the D1313T writers or the ethers, but I could tell them:
a. No picture of the building will be permitted with or without
his entering or leaving the building.
b. Nis would go this far in any Agency statement: I could say
that he had gone to Seattle with We. MeCone to bring home the body of
Paul Pigott. From Seattle he wee summoned to Washington. Ears he
discussed the Cuban situation with other Presidential advisers, and
he called the United States Intelligenee Board into continuous session.
With other Presidential advisors he bas kept the President informed of
the developing Cuban situation.
STANLEY J. GROGAN
Assistant to the Director
act DDP
DDI
IS
Dir/Boo
CI
Oen. Counsel
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2014/01/15:
CIA-RDP74-00115R000300020033-5