NEWSLETTER

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00065R000100130001-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 15
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 8, 2012
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: December 1, 1987
• Content Type: MISC

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/E/1I 11
"I^'.,
FBIS
Foreign Broadcast
Information Service
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FBIS Newsletter
87-6
Contents
Management Views
Modernization Update
Headquarters Developments
Field Developments
People
Calendar Notes
FBIS Headquarters Building
Notice
Field facilities are reminded that copies of this Newsletter should
be destroyed after reading by U.S. staff employees. This Newsletter is
not to be retained in field facilities.
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Management Views
With this issue the FBIS Newsletter begins a regular section in
which FBIS management answers employee questions on topics of general
interest. To initiate the section, the questions below were posed to
Director of FBIS, on 30 November 1987:
Question: The past 6 months have been a time of exceptional change
at FBIS Headquarters, highlighted by the move from Rosslyn to Reston, the
incorporation of the JPRS sections into their respective Production Group
divisions, and the introduction of the unclassified segment of the
Automated FBIS System. From your perspective, how have these changes
gone and where do we stand?
Answer: Looking back on the last 6 months and measuring what we
have accomplished against our expectations, I think we all would agree
that the people of FBIS adjusted very well to the turmoil. The move from
Rosslyn was traumatic for some of our employees, as was the change in the
way Ops and Prod Group do their business. I think without exception we
planned for and executed these transitions in exceptional fashion.
Perhaps the most traumatic event was the transition to an automated
system which, even had it performed perfectly, would have provided a
significant challenge to the Daily Report, the Wire, and to Prod Group.
Clearly, our expectations of how this new system would work were higher
than they should have been in some cases, but that having been said, we
are all disappointed in the system performance to date. There seems to
be a reasonable, finite set of discrepancies and features that are bother-
some to the users, but these can be corrected over time. All of these
discrepancies are far overshadowed by the system-wide problems of
timeliness, both in the sense of movement of message traffic and response
time to the user. Since August, the entire focus of attention has been
on that aspect of the system performance. At this time it is not clear
that there is a single satisfactory solution to the problems. The
computer industry has some "canned" answers to problems of this nature,
but FBIS cannot be satisfied with "canned" answers without having those
answers supported by detailed analysis. That process is ongoing and
hopefully the major issues affecting system timeliness will be resolved.
I am optimistic that we will eliminate these problems, but share
everyone's concern about when. The clock is ticking on our classified
system--due in the next calendar year--and if we have not resolved the
questions and the issues of the unclassified system we will find
ourselves in a very, very awkward position.
Overall, my sense is that the initial period of change went fairly
well, the nagging issues of AFS performance will be resolved, and the
long delayed "tuning" of the system will proceed at a relatively constant
level of effort.
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I should note that our products continue to flow and, with one or
two exceptions, the Wire has been able to fill its Community-wide role.
I also sense that the reaction to Reston has been very positive. In
talking with employees about Reston, I detect a general acceptance of the
location, facilities, and new furniture. We still have a number of
things to do here in the complex to establish this building as the FBIS
Headquarters and to complete the furnishings. Slowly but surely we will
achieve this, too.
Question: As we settle in at Reston, what do you foresee as the
main concerns of FBIS managers in 1988?
Answer: Fiscal year 1988 as viewed from fiscal year 1987 had many,
many challenges for not only the managers in FBIS, but most of the
employees. As noted earlier, our period of adjustment is still ongoing.
Overshadowing all of that, however, are concerns with the budget. The
Congressional deficit reduction actions and the Gramm-Rudman reductions,
along with other Agency-wide cuts, will have a severe impact on FBIS.
I do want to assure all of our employees that there is no intention
to reduce our personnel or in any way impact on the work force. The
Agency position has been that we will absorb these many budget reductions
without affecting our people. We are going to be hard pressed to
continue to provide the current level of collection, production, and
analysis in the face of these massive reductions. Needless to say, the
momentum of the modernization program may well be lost.
FY 1988 clearly will be a challenge for everyone in FBIS. In some
areas we are going to have to maintain our productivity with fewer
financial resources than in the past or, because of hiring limitations,
without being able to fill branches which are working far below required
strength, or perhaps making do with equipment and/or services which
should have been replaced some time ago.
Unfortunately, these budget reductions are not limited to FY 1988
and the carryover effect into FY 1989 will also be felt by FBIS.
Fortunately, we have been able to plan for these budget reductions
without affecting the support to our consumers and that is really what
FBIS is a
ll about. My hope is that we will be able to do so in the
F__ I
Do you have a question for FBIS management? If so, send it to FBIS
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Modernization Program Update
The multiyear FBIS Modernization program began in 1984. It involves
automation, communications, and satellite monitoring. The Engineering
Support Group provides the following update on the status of the various
aspects of modernization:
The first phase of Headquarters automation became a reality in July
1987 with the transition to our new facility in Reston. The Headquarters
Unclassified Segment is operational, although it has been experiencing
"birthing pains" as editors and system operators learn to exploit the
system. Wire Service and DRD products are being produced entirely on the
AFS system, and the number of "automated" JPRS reports has been
increasing daily. Lockheed is working to eliminate the "bugs," and we
expect to make some hardware upgrades to speed up certain functions that
currently take longer than anticipated.
Work on the Headquarters Classified Segment (HCS) is entering the
final stages, with delivery of all hardware now expected around late
spring of 1988. The system is expected to be operational by late in the
year. Recent cuts in the modernization program budget have forced
cutbacks in the total number of HCS user terminals originally forecast.
The automation of field bureaus is progressing on schedule with the
automation of the sixth bureau, Panama, currently undergoing
installation. To date, Vienna, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Okinawa, and Tel Aviv
are utilizing the FBA-1 system. The Field Engineering Review Board at
Headquarters is actively considering numerous recommendations on
improving the existing FBA configuration, not least of which is improving
the press agency capture and data base management system. Concurrent
with bureau automation is an ongoing effort to upgrade field bureau
communications. Eventually all bureaus will be transmitting/receiving at
much higher rates than at present. Coordination i us
controlling aaencies_ including
pressures are also negatively impacting FBA-2 development plans.
The INTERNET system provides satellite communication capabilities
between FBIS Headquarters and certain overseas locations. It can be used
for transmitting TV, audio, data, and facsimile signals between any of
the INTERNET stations. The only two active stations at this time are
London and Washington. Due to political controversies, the Panama link
was never allowed to go operational. London Bureau operationally uses
the INTERNET link to send TV and we are testing FAX transmissions. The
INTERNET concept is the basis for strategic planning to significantly
25X1
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improve FBIS worldwide communications capabilities and allow for
real-time delivery of important television coverage. Planning for other
INTERNET sites is dependent upon current political conditions and impacts
of budget cuts. There are no INTERNET sites planned for FY-88. The ITS
(Information Transmission System, formerly known as INTELSAT Business
Service, or IBS) data service via INTERNET is a technically feasible
program, but near-term implementation is unlikely due to funding
shortfalls and prospects of out negotiations to secure host
government approvals.
Receive-Only Satellite Earth Terminals (ROSETs) have been installed
in London, Okinawa, Panama, Vienna, Bangkok, Paraguay, and Nicosia
(Nicosia being the newest). These antennas provide the basis for
satellite reception of TV, FM, facsimile, and remote teletype signals.
The equipment ranges from 13-meter receiving systems to small and
relatively inexpensive 2.8-meter configurations. Future plans include an
additional ROSET installation in Paraguay and possibly one in Okinawa in
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Headquarters Developments
The Agency's Executive Committee has selected FBIS as executive agent
for the Open Source Information Exchange (OSIX) initiative. The move tasks
FBIS with establishing an Open Source Center containing an on-line data base
of FBIS and other open source products for use by other USG agencies. The
center would also house additional staff to coordinate open source coverage
with other providers and users of such information. A memorandum of
understanding between FBIS, on, and OIR is being drafted to outline the key
responsibilities of each office. Intelligence Community funding of
necessary dollar and personnel resources for th' iative, planned for
the FY90-92 timeframe, is yet to be determined 25X1
Prior to General Secretary Gorbachev's arrival in Washington for the
U.S.-USSR summit, the Soviet Embassy asked USIA's Worldnet service to
provide videotapes of Moscow television's main evening newscast to show to
Gorbachev and his delegation during their visit. Worldnet asked the FBIS
Television Center for its assistance in meeting the Soviet request. FBIS
responded during the visit by providing tapes of the program to Worldnet to
convey to the Soviet Embassy. FBIS also provided Langley consumers with
live coverage of special Moscow television programs on Gorbachev's visit. 25X1
On 9 December the President's Daily Brief featured an FBIS report on
Soviet media treatment of the Washington summit. The report was prepared by
Parle Analysis Group using information filed by London Bureau and25X1
PMU.
On 2 December the FBIS Foreign Language Service Center at Headquarters
received a call from the Arms Control Intelligence Staff requesting the
immediate translation of the draft Soviet proposal on the INF treaty. The
draft was at that moment coming in via facsimile from Geneva and ACSI had
to send a response to Geneva within 24 hours. FLASC officer 25X1
translated the key portion of the text--the first six a e n the spot and
completed the remaining 64 pages by the next morning. 4-S 25X1
Five Headquarters officers conducted a workshop on JPRS automation for
about 30 JPRS contractors in New Mexico in October. The workshop was held
during the annual conference of the American Translators Association in
Farther west,
C/ESG, briefed FBIS retirees on the West
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Coast at their annual reunion in Santa Rosa, California, 2-4 October.
The S&T Unit chiefs were at Headquarters 26-30 October to attend a
Production Group management conference and to meet with consumers and FBIS
A DI research paper, "Chernobyl: A Year Later," notes that knowledge
largely from FBIS translations of Soviet technical literature.,,"[ .. 25X1
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Field Developfents
Since Okinawa Bureau lost its Pesos satellite dish to a typhoon in
late August, ill winds have blown on several other FBIS bureaus elsewhere
on the globe. In mid-September a stong wind damaged the television
antenna used by Paraguay Bureau to monitor Argentine television. A month
later, operations at London Bureau were disrupted overnight when
hurricane-force winds caused power outages at Caversham and Crowsley
Park. Back-up power generators at both sites failed, causing some loss
of coverage. The BBC tasked its engineers with adopting procedures to
prevent a repetition of such generator failures. In late November heavy
rain and hail in Asuncion damaged the feed horn of a satellite dish at
the American Embassy, causing a 2-day communications outage at Paraguay
Bureau. At Key West Bureau, hurricane shutters ordered in September for
the windows and glass doors of its houses were not in place when
Hurricane Floyd passed over the area on 12 October, but no damage from
the storm was reported.
Hong Kong Bureau inaugurated its remote monitoring unit in the
Philippines on 2 November on a limited basis. Using equipment and
communication lines installed at the American Embassy in Manila, the
bureau can remotely tune and receive AM and FM radios. Full capability
of the unit, including television monitoring, was scheduled to be
achieved by using a contractor to handle functions requiring manual
operations.
Okinawa Bureau now can look back upon a trying time in late October
when the bureau's most important coverage event in 5 years, the 13th
Chinese Communist Party Congress, coincided with inauguration of the
FBA-1 computer system and numerous crashes thereof, the worst
communications outages in recent memory, and a large number of people
nd going. Among the visitors during the period was the DDS&T.
Panama Bureau reported in November that U.S.-Panamanian relations
were at their lowest point in 20 years. Also, local unrest was
continuing with no end in sight. During a government roundup of
opposition activists in October one of the bureau's local employees and
his family were caught on the streets and summarily sentenced to 180 days
in prison. They were freed after a day and a half of confinement.
Seoul Bureau staffers) learned
second place in the Korea-wide Trivia ursui team Championships.
Earlier they won first place in the Korea central region competition.
25X1
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Islamabad Unit Chief raised $662 for the International 25X1
School of Islamabad in September when he made 241 out of shots
during a basketball fundraiser sponsored by the school. X50 f~U~ 25X1
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Pew
Career Intelligence Medal
who retired in the spring after 31 years with
FBIS as an editor, supervisor, and manager, received the Career
Intelligence Medal in a ceremony on 23 October. During his career
served at Headquarters in Operations, Analysis, and 25X1
Production Groups. In the field, he served at West Coast,
Hokkaido, Vienna London, and Mediterranean Bureaus and Athens
Unit. In 197was among the Mediterranean Bureau staff 25X1
members evacuated rom Cyprus following the Turkish invasion and
was awarded a Certificate of Distinction for his performance at
the time. Just prior to his retirement was chief of the 25X1
Field Coverage Branch in Monitoring Operations Division. F 25X1
Staff Award
Exceptional Accomplishment
Foreign National Awards
London
Bangkok
Bangkok
Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Paraguay
Bangkok
London
Bangkok
Bangkok
Swaziland
London
Seoul
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Exceptional Accomplishment
Exceptional Accomplishment
Exceptional Accomplishment
Exceptional Accomplishment
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
Special Achievement
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Calendar Notes
Looking Back
10 years ago -- Talks were under way in December 1977 to terminate
unsuccessful RAPID project to automate Daily
Report and Wire, begun in 1973.
20 years ago -- London Press Monitoring Unit began operating from
Wembley Park offices in December 1967, one result
of the FBIS merger earlier in the year with the
Foreign Documents Division of the Office of Central
Reference; in Puerto Rico, new Caribbean Bureau,
being constructed underneath spider web-like
"wire-grid lens"antenna, neared completion;
Okinawa Bureau began full-scale use of SATRAP
device for relaying Chinese radioteletype
material.
40 years ago -- In December 1947, National Security Council
Intelligence Directive 6, the post-war FBIS
"charter," was issued to the 3-month-old CIA;
DCI approved setting up an FBIS monitoring
facility on Cyprus; Engineerin Staff established,
with the appointment of as chief 25X1
engineer.
46 years ago -- In December 1941, the fledgling Foreign Broadcast
Monitoring Service, having earlier established its
main radio monitoring site at Silver Hill,
Maryland, and a field listening post in Portland,
Oregon, established monitoring posts in Santurce,
Puerto Rico, and Kingsville, Texas; propaganda
analysts began a weekly serial that noted on
6 December that Tokyo broadcasts had become
"hostile and defiant"; the first director of the
service, Lloyd A. Free, returned from London on
23 December and told press that his mission--to
establish U.S.-UK cooperation in radio monitoring--
had been "quite successful."
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Looking Ahead
31 December 1987 -- Deadline for selecting retirement systems.
3 January
1988
-- GS-11 and GS-15 promotions effective.
9 January
1988
-- Open house at FBIS Headquarters.
18 January
1988
-- Deadline for Secretary of the Year Nominations-
5 February 1988 -- D/FBIS visits Key West and Latin American and
African bureaus.
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