DRAFT REPORT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL ON OVERT PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80R01731R003500200006-6
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: January 4, 2017
• Document Release Date: March 13, 2006
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: November 17, 1948
• Content Type: REPORT

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November 17, 1948r
COPY NO.
DRAFT REPORT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL
on
OVERT PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
(Proposed by the Air Force Consultant as a substitute
for "Plans and Preparations for Wartime Information )
Programs and Related Activities", November 23, 1948.
THE PROBLEM
1. To determine the responsibilities and functions of a
suitable organization within the Government for the peacetime
planning pertaining to psychological warfare functions, which. wiJ-
serve as a nucleus for expansion in time of war or threat of war
as determined by the President.
ANALYSIS OF THE PROBLEM
2. Responsibility within this Government for the peaceti.r=t
planning and preparation of psychological warfare operation: to
carried on in the event of war has been partially but not cuumpltr a,
ly defined.
3. NSC 10/2 made provision for the covert phase of p ycv--
logical warfare in peace and in war.
4. NBC 4 assigned the responsibility for the ccordiri'lti -j
of foreign information measures to the Secretary of State.
5. The SANACC Subcommittee on Special Studies and
tions is charged with planning for the wartime phases of p,yck-('
logical warfare in the overt field. The charter of this Siibccr.-
mittee is as follows (SWNCC 301/1)
NSC, OSD & DOS review(s) completed.
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*400 .61# TOP '13EC2~~
"The Subcommittee is charged with preparation of poli-iE:s,
plans and studies for immediate and continuous employrent ry
national psychological warfare in time of war or threat o nEr
as determined by the President. The Subcommittee shall have
authority in the absence of a national wartime organizatir;,
for psychological warfare for coordination and implementa_:,lr
of approved psychological warfare plans in any war emerge:.,.,
which might suddenly arise."
This charter was later amended to restrict the activities of t}.
Committee to the overt phases only of psychological warfare.
6. The SANACC in 304/14 concurred with the recommend{Ltioc:.
of the Joint Chiefs of Staff that "there should be established s
soon as practicable under the National Security Council a Fsych-
logical Warfare Organization but with its peacetime scope timid
to that of a working nucleus for planning and coordination onl-i."
The Joint Chiefs of Staff considered it dangerous to natioril 34T:cu-
rity to delay the establishment of such an organization until w,nr
or threat of war, and vital that such a nucleus be established
immediately under the National Security Council.
7. The SANACC forwarded these recommendations to the Nazi r-
al Security Council for their consideration and appropriate ac-,i.,-r..,
together with SWNCC 304/6, a study of the problem, a recomm_,nda-
tion that a National Organization be established, and a ch&rte.
for a director thereof, and SANACC 304/12, an outline plan Df a
proposed organization.
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CONCLUSIONS
8. It is concluded that the SANACC series of papers 3011/6,
/12, and /14 prescribe the most effacacious method to solve the
problem of overt psychological warfare, both foreign and dome tic.
in peace and. in war.
RECOMMENDATIONS
9. It is recommended that the NSC approve the provisioas
of SWNCC 304/6 and SANACC 304/12 and 304/14 as they pertain t?
overt psychological warfare and recommend to the President that he
direct that the action outlined in those papers be implemented
immediately.
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