lowing committees: Aeronautics, including aero motors; Aids to Navigation; Chemistry and Physics; Electricity; Food and Sanitation; Internal-Combustion Motors; LifeSaving Appliances; Metallurgy, Mines and Torpedoes; Optical Glass; Ordnance and Explosives; Production, Organization, Manufacture and Standardization; Public Works; Yards and Docks; Ship Construction; Special Problems; Steam Engineering and Ship Propulsion; Submarines; Transportation; Wireless and Communications.

CHAPTER III

THE MOBILIZATION OF PUBLICITY AGENCIES

News

The Committee on Public Information - Its dual function of censorship and publicity-Control of domestic publications Voluntary and self-imposed censorship of the press Publicity activities and organization of the Committee Civic and educational coöperation - Syndicate features-Foreign-language newspapers Official Bulletin of the United States Women's war work- Four-minute men - Public speaking Pictures - Films - Other services - Censorship a war-time necessity-Special conditions demanding it in the United States Control of radio communication assumed by the Navy-Military censorship of telegraph, telephone, and submarine-cable communication with foreign countries Additional powers granted by CongressEspionage Act Trading-with-the-Enemy Act Control of communications by the Censorship Board Control of the foreign-language press by the Post Office Department.

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Almost immediately on the entrance of the United States into the war, it became apparent that special provision should be made, on the one hand, to control the giving of information to the public regarding matters of military import, and, on the other, to make known in an authoritative manner such information as it was desirable that the public should have. On April 13, 1917, the Secretaries of State, War, and the Navy addressed a joint letter to the President calling this matter to his attention and suggesting that there be created a body to be known as the Committee on Public Information which should have these two functions of censorship and publicity in charge. Acting on this recommendation, the President, by executive order issued April 14, 1917, provided for the creation of this Committee, specifying that it should consist of the Secretary of State, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy,

and a civilian who should act as the executive head of the Committee. George Creel was named as the civilian member.

In describing the work of this Committee it is well to distinguish between its two functions as a censorship board and as an organ of publicity. In respect to the first it should be noted that the functions of the Committee related wholly to the control of publications inside the United States. It had no duty in respect to the censoring of communications passing between the United States and other countries, the control of such communications being vested in a Censorship Board which will be hereafter described. The situation as regards the control of the domestic press at the outbreak of the war was one in which the Government not only had little or no positive powers to control such publications, but was loath to seek enlarged powers because of the strong adherence of the American people to the principle of the freedom of the press. The Government therefore decided that such measures of control as it would seek to exercise should be in the way of making an appeal to the press of the country voluntarily to refrain from the publication of information that might be of value to the enemy or embarrass the Government in its operations at home. To the Committee on Public Information was entrusted the duty of making this appeal to the press and of taking such steps as were in its power to see that its appeal was met. The Committee accordingly prepared and issued to the press a carefully drafted statement setting forth the character of the information that the Government desired should not be given publicity, and the rules that should be observed by the press in giving information of a military nature or in commenting upon such news. In this statement it

was carefully set forth that the regulations thus formulated were not of a legally binding character, but were requests which it was hoped that the press would voluntarily observe. The statement thus said:

The Committee on Public Information is without legal authority or moral right to bring any form of pressure on publications to enforce observance of these requests. These paragraphs embody what the military and naval experts of our country hold to be the minimum that can be asked at this time for the protection of our soldiers and sailors and the success of our military plans. For their observance the Government relies implicitly upon the loyalty and judgment of the individual writer and publisher. These requests go

to the press without larger authority than the necessities of the war-making branches. Their enforcement is a matter for the press itself.

The Committee, or its Chairman, also participated in other branches of the work of controlling the imparting of information that might be of use to the enemy through the fact that the Chairman of the Committee was a member of the Censorship Board to be hereafter described, and that the Committee was made the agency or clearing house to relate the activities of the military and naval classes to the other departments of the Government and to the public.

The activities of the Committee as an organ of publicity were exceedingly varied and important. Its Division of News centralized the giving out of information by the Army and Navy and other war agencies. About 14,000 country newspapers and 2,000 papers in the smaller cities were furnished a weekly service of condensed war news of two or three columns in length. This matter was sent out largely in plate form, the newspapers bearing the expense of plate. A Division of Civic and Educational Coöperation prepared and dis

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tributed pamphlets having for their purpose the setting forth of America's side of the issues raised by the war, the correction of the enemy's misrepresentations, and the exposure of the aggressions and unjustifiable methods of prosecuting the war of which the enemy has been guilty. To this end it issued two series of pamphlets, one known as the "Red, White, and Blue Series," and the other, the War Information Series.' These pamphlets were given a wide circulation, over eighteen million copies in all being distributed. In their preparation the Division had the assistance of 40 or 50 college men who gave their services without remuneration. The Division also coöperated with the National Historical Board in promoting the proper study of modern history and with other organizations in the work of giving to students and teachers a knowledge of the historical background of the war and the fundamental issues that were involved in it. A Division of Syndicate Features secured the preparation by prominent writers of articles presenting the issues of the war or treating other matters calculated to stimulate the patriotism of the people for publication in such a way that they would get a large circulation. Some 50 American authors and an equal number of college presidents and professors undertook to meet the wishes of the Division in this way without remuneration. Weekly articles were prepared by a very considerable number of these men, which were given to the Saturday and Sunday papers in all parts of the country. A Division of Foreign-Language Newspapers had the important duty of reading the papers received from Germany and Switzerland, preparing translations or digests of articles appearing in such papers to which it was desirable to give publicity for the use of the Division of News and the Division of Syndicate Features.