INTERIM REPORT ON PRESIDENTIAL CLASSROOM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00308A000100130001-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 24, 2000
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: March 26, 1975
• Content Type: MF

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March 1975
SUM FOR: Director 1t 1rathing
SUBJICT interim
Presidentia
Introduction: ,our, of the six scheduled runnings
olv'in of the 1400 high S,!hod 1 students from all over the,
country who have part is i of tech in tine pru r a e
Attitudes: Tito students' attitudes are shaped i
- aliss and their lack of historical
th$rvatl 3
t b
.
y
r
consciousness, but they a:,a also very such influenced by the
Vietnam and Watergate btc& lsshes.
3" There are 5.tru g currents of i.:
and there i q. little Perception of any
acifi
.
frog the USSR. The ~.eed for intelligence is less
obvious than it was -,luring the great confrontations
perspective of the present, somewhat like an aberrat
of the older generat-can.
ib The preystl,.~e of the Presidency and
Executive Branch is sow. CIA accountability to the
e.sidant and the does riot quiet concerns any more.
it is what they fear. By accountability,
e
,
can Congressic! ai accountability.. Some go
connection, the~tidet is running very strong against any
secrecy in OVSrnmerY- and irc are the model of a secret
governmental organi F: ltion. CIA's secret budget has
be tcome a symbol of t ,is resentment.
CO There is tigreat a oralisa evidenced, particu--
iarly in regard to ,.IA intervention in the
STATINTL affairs of other ccaut3tries"' t is the model) and to
allegations of CIA er ssassinat e3 .
The attitu ~e t.owaicd the press is compi.etmly
uncritical. Journa;s .sts arks, considered the heroes who
uncovered the abuse:, of Watergate.
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0. The "right 4.0 privacy" and the repugnance
against files is running very strong. Everyone wants
to know about CIA "spying" on. American citizens and
accumulating ,files? in them.
f. Conspiracy theories, are beginning to bloom,
particularly those revolving around the assassination
of President Kennedy. There is a great revival of
interest in this trag=,-dy manifested by the students and
a great reluctance tc accept the findings of the Warren
Commission. Generail'r the conspiracy questions are
asked in a probing Sco r t of wsLy rather than hurled as
accusations.
g. On the posi ive side, there is still an
inherent interest in the work of intelligence and, at
times, some express .i apathy for CIA in reaction to the
assaults of the press. one regional variable has been
noted: students frog= the South are more apt to be
receptive to CIA thai those from other regions.
questions:
a. Most of the questions are the usual sub-
stantive, operational, or administrative questions.
For example : What will happen to South Vietnam?. .. What
happens when a CIA agent is caught? ... What are the
requirements for becoming an intelligence officer?
b. Some of the more persistent and/or sensitive
questions follow. T`ey are not new this year, but are
asked more frequent :t .
(1) Political Action Questions: Does CIA
overthrow governments?...Did it overthrow Chile?...
Didn't CIA supply arms for killing Allende?
(2) Assassination Questions: Does CIA
assassinate people?.. .Would you comment on the
rumor that CIA ;assassinated. President Kennedy?
(3) Accou.rEtability Questions : Does CIA take
action on its own?...Wh.o is CIA accountable to?...
Why is the CIA F udget secret?
c. Last year': persistent question is not
frequently asked any more: What was CIA's involvement
in Watergate?
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IN i M
ct. The new q7,ic tions that have come up this year
are as follows:
(1) Don`est; c spying Questions: What types
of domestic actt. ities are prohibited in your
charter?...It nais recently been brought out that
CIA trained over twelve US police departments in
the use of explc: sives. How does this deal with
intelligence?... fo what extent does CIA keep files
on American c it:i :ens? ...Please comment on the
charges that CILk has be+bn opening the mail of US
citizens?...Wit- the current allegations that pri-
vate citizens a-e being bugged, what checks are
there to assure that the privacy of US citizens
will not be disturbed?
(2) Questions Dealing with Morality: Does
CIA exercise any moral judgment? ...Is there any
code of ethics on how far you can go or can you
just do whatever you want? ... What moral right do
we have to mess around with other governments?
(3) Variations on the Domestic Assassination
Theme : Did CIA make a deal with Nixon to help him
win the 1960 cla: ctions so it could have a free
hand in dealing with Castro, so that when he lost,
it then plotted Kennedy's assassinaation?...as
Oswald a CIA ag ?nt1
(4) Miscellaneous Questions: There have
been many rumor, that CIA was involved in the Kent
State affair, t.Eaat you hired students to start the
riots in the sixxtios. Did you have anything to do
with ; rom Puerto Rico. We were told
that in. 1940 -I!,- changed our economic system from
an agricultural to an industrial one so that we
could never be .ndepend[ent as we do not have the
proper economic basis. Please comment.
4. Feedback: PacF: Presidential Classroom attends 17
seminars du z t ieir wce _ in Washington. At the end of the
week, they rate each one. We have received the ratings for
the first two programs.
a. The first week, CJ[A was rated 7th of 17,
outranked by Jacks :lerson on the News Media, Vic Gold
on the Presidency, 1,,anator Humphrey on the Senate,
General Brown on t1-wc Military, Justice Tom Clark on the
Judiciary, and the 1partment of State on Foreign
Policy.
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b. The secord week, CIA was rated 1st of 17.
Two factors my have inf]ucaced the difference in ratings
between the two weeks. I,;, the first week, the film "Need to
Know" did not have a posiive impact. For the second session,
it was dropped and the O minute briefing was expanded to 50
minutes. The longer period allowed more time to establish
rapport and credibility. The second factor involves the
seminar on the News Media which is presented on the day
following the CIA program. In the first week, it was
handled by Jack Anderson rho undercut us with several anti-
CIA remarks. In the sect: nd week, James Kilpatrick handled
that News Media seminar and said some good things about CIA,
thus reinforcing what we sought to convey.
STATINTL
OTF. Briefing ,cer
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 F d ifLASSI Fi ID t ' --- --- L I SECRET
SUBJECT: (Optional)
Interim Report on Presidential )[assroom
FROM:
EXTEI, SION
NO.
DT R
1026 C of C
3245
DATE
TO: (Officer designation, room numbs?, and
building)
DA
TE
OFFICER'S
INITIALS
COMMENTS )Number each comment to show from whom
to whom. Draw a line across column offer each comment.)
RECEIVED
rO VARDED
l
DDA
7D
18
a
N
As
-
types
t
questions and attitudes
toward the Agency displayed
by students in the Presi
del tiai Classroom ,
sTL
14.
0 UN ^ UNCLASSIFIED