NEW YORK TIMES - MODERN INTELLIGENCE: MYTH AND REALITY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00901R000500020007-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 8, 2000
• Sequence Number: 7
• Publication Date: August 3, 1975
• Content Type: NSPR

NEW YORK TIMES AUGUST 3 iQ75
Approved For Release 2001/03/06 : CIA-RDP91-009
Modern Intelligence:
Myth, and Reality
By William E. Colby
WASHINGTON-The Aztecs thought
the Sun God had to he strengthened
each day by the sacrifice of a young
man or woman. Without the sacrifice
the sun could not rise.
The myth of the Sun God's need
drove the nation through the daily
travail of the sacrifice.
The reality of astronomy to explain
the sunrise was unknown.
Today we have myths about our
intelligence. They are expressed in
sensational catchwords: "dirty tricks,"
"invisible government," "terminate
with extreme prejudice," "lie to any-
one but the President," "infiltration of
the White House," "destabilization,"
"secret war," "massive illegal."
They come from old, outmoded ideas
about intelligence: espionage, intrigue,
derring-do.
These myths achieve lives of their
own. Formal denials, evidence to the
contrary, and independent, serious,
follow-up assessments of the true pro-
portions of a catch phrase never over-
take the original allegation. The myth
becomes accepted as reality.
STATINTL
Our careful centralization of foreign
information from open, public sources
provides us with a compendium and
continuity of facts.
America's technical genius has revo-
lutionized intelligence, It has given us
new views of distant objects, new
abilities to analyze and absorb masses
of data and detail, new electronic ways
to keep up with the fast-moving and
complex world of today.
To these must still be added that
information that we can only get from
the resourceful, dedicated clandestine
operator. He is the only one who can
overcome the harriers of the closed
and hostile societies that share. our
planet. He can tell us of secret plans
for tomorrow or the research ideas of
today. He tells us of the human inter-
action-something no technology can
show-among groups and leaders of
closed societies.
Experts of independence, talent and
continued
In normal times, these myths are
but part of the life of an intelligence
professional, like the anonymity and
the lonely challenges, intellectual as
well as physical, of a demanding craft.
Today, however, these individual
myths are gaining momentum ? and
mass. They tend to portray intelligence
as unconstitutional, improper, un-
wanted by our citizens. They threaten
American intelligence's ability to con-
tribute to the political, economic and
military safety and welfare of our
nation. These myths threaten dntelli-
gence's ability to help our country to
negotiate with-not confront-oppo-
nents in an unsettled world.
If we believe these myths, we can
make our own mistaken Aztec sacri-
fice-American intelligence-in the be-
lief that only thus can the democratic
sun of our free society rise.
We must not sacrifice a virile, a
necessary, contributor to the safety of
our nation, the welfare of our citizens,
and peacekeeping in the world of the
future to a handful of myths. The
reality of intelligence today is as dif-
ferent from the myths about it as the
reality of astronomy from the Aztec
myth of the sunrise.
Let's note some of -the realities.,
Approved For Release 2001/03/06 : CIA-RDP91-00901 R000500020007-7
 Approved For Release 2001/03/06 : CIA-RDP91-00901 R000500020007-7
intellectual integrity study this wealth
of reporting. They write objective as-
sessments of world affairs free from
domestic political bias or Government
departments' budget desires.
Intelligence collection and analysis
cover not only military threats but
political problems and economic dan-
gers as well. Intelligence forecasts of
future trends abroad permit us to
make national decisions about future
foreign threats in time to react.
Intelligence permits us to negotiate
international differences before they
become disputes. And today the excel-
lence of our information now con-
tributes to a new role for intelligence:
peacemaking and peacekeeping.
With sure information about the
plans, capabilities and dispositions of
the political and military forces on
both sides of foreign crises, we can
clarify their misunderstandings of each
other that might lead them to go to
war; we can reassure both sides of
getting from us early warning of
hostile moves by the other side.
Perhaps the strongest myths relate
to the Central Intelligence Agency's
mission of covert political and para-
military action. Today's reality is that
little of this nature is done. What is
done is fully controlled by the policy
levels of our Government and is re-
ported to committees of the Congress.
This, then, is the reality of modern
intelligence. We understand why the
myths arose, as we understand why
the Aztec myth was born, but serious
and scientific investigations by the
Congressional committees examining
intelligence will clarify the need of
our free society for intelligence and
show the excellence of the intelligence
structure that serves it. They should
also show the true proportions of the
missteps of the past, and the national
atmosphere in which they occurred.
With this new perception of reality
should also come clear direction and
effective supervision. This will insure
that the new reality remains fully
compatible with our free society. For
this, too, is a reality of American
intelligence, that it must conform to,
the will of the American public as,
well as our constitutional procedures..,
This need not include some new'
myth that "the public has a right to,
know" everything. The citizen does
have a right to expect that this newt
reality of intelligence will protect his.
country's essential secrets.
We protect other American secrets-,
proceedings of grand juries, diplomacy,,
trade, income tax and census data.
although intelligence secrets are being
exposed in unprecedented, and danger-
ous, volume.
Secrecy is not new in America, In-
telligence professionals accept, indeed
seek, a better discipline to enforce ad-
herence to the fundamental obligation
of intelligence, -that it protect its
sources.
With public understanding of the
realities of American Intelligence, we
.can avoid a useless Aztec sacrificer
Nor need we believe that ultimate
myth: that America does not have the
responsibility and restraint necessary
to have the best intelligence service:.
In the world.
William E. Colby is the Director of
Approved For Release 2001/03/06 : CIA-RDP91-00901 R000500020007-7