TRENDS IN THE VOLUME OF INFORMATION CALANDAR YEAR 1973

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01495R000600100017-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: January 4, 2017
• Document Release Date: July 11, 2005
• Sequence Number: 17
• Publication Date: February 28, 1974
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2005/07/1. TDP80B01495RO 600100017-0
4, ff
28 February 1974
MEMORANDUM FOR: Deputy Director for Intelligence
SUBJECT Trends in the Volume of Information
Calendar Year 1973
1. This memorandum, for your information, summarizes
the classified document flow into the Agency during Calendar
Year 1973. The volume includes receipts into the Cable
Secretariat and CRS.
2. The general trends noted in last year's report
continued--increased utilization of electricals to replace
paper copies and decreases in document receipts from all
sources extending for the fourth straight year the pattern
away from the constant heavy increases that occurred during
most of the 1960s. Many producing organizations also
limited copies or combined publications. This may be
an indication of the paper shortage, a change in traditional
reporting procedures or a combination of both.
3. Attachment A depicts the general trends in docu-
ment receipts for CY 1968-CY 1973. The slight increase
in non-codeword cable traffic handled by the Cable Secretariat
has little impact on the DDI intelligence analyst. Cable
Secretariat figures include both outgoing and incoming
cables of CIA, State, and DoD with a large unknown factor
for administrative, fiscal and operational messages that
have no bearing on intelligence analysis or research.
The codeword receipts are also deceiving--a large decrease
(shown by the dotted line) occurred in April 1972 when
NSA eliminated their hard copy follow-up (HCF) paper copies
edition of their Headquarters-produced electricals. This
decrease is partially offset by the reporting of 54,000
OAKs as individual items rather than OAK supplement com-
pilations. In May 1972 CRS began to disseminate OAK
supplements on a subject basis using Machine Assisted
Dissemination (MAD) and each item within the OAK supplement
ET
Approved For Release 2005/07/22: CIA-RDP80B0149
25X1
 Approved For Release 2005/07/22: CI f 01495R00Q&Q0100017-0
SUBJECT: Trends in the Volume of Information
Calendar Year 1973
was counted as a dissemination unit. This type of dissem-
ination while improving the utility of the OAK is not
a reflection of any increased information flow.
4. Attachment B is a comparative chart by source of
CRS's document receipts for CY 1972 and CY 1973. Major
increases (percentage wise but minor in numbers) occurred
in Top Secret collateral and TKH cables. Priority prelim-
inary read-out messages have accounted for some of this
TKH cable increase. As further illustration of the switch
to electricals over paper, TDFIRs (electricals) increased
16% in 1973 over 1972, while the traditional FIRs (paper
copies) decreased 17% over the same period.
5. Other significant developments were:
a. The Department of Defense now sends about 22%
of their information reports electrically. These
approximate about 1,200 a month or 14,000 a year.
The electrical IRs are separated from the cable traffic
and are processed by CRS using the MAD rather than
the traditional manual methods employed by the Cable
Secretariat. The remaining DOD IRs continue to be
received in paper copies.
25X1
6. These figures continue to dispel the popularly
held "information explosion" theory used by many to push
exotic and automated Community information handling systems.
25X1
Director, Central Reference Service
Atts: A/S
Approved For Release 2005/07/22 :,Ff)j80B01495R000600100017-0
 25X1 Approved For Release 2005/07/22 : CIA-RDP80BO1495R000600100017-0
Next 1 Page(s) In Document Exempt
Approved For Release 2005/07/22 : CIA-RDP80BO1495R000600100017-0