Why Censorship Now?

SEVERAL weeks ago the Government announced that it was initiating a voluntary program designed to prevent unclassified strategic data from being made available to unfriendly foreign nations. Administration of the project was vested in the newly created Office of Strategic Information (OSI). OSI was set up at the direction of the President on the basis of a recommendation of the National Security Council. Its director, R. Karl Honaman, who is on loan from Bell Telephone Laboratories, is responsible directly to the Secretary of Commerce, Sinclair Weeks. Details of the organization were reported earlier (C&EN, Nov. 22, 1954, pages 4668-9). Because the general objective of OSI of keeping strategic information away from potential enemies is commendable, we have hesitated to express any concern or adverse comments on the program. We felt that it was desirable to give the agency an opportunity to come up with a specific policy and a detailed program. These have not been forthcoming. ...