Action.-All Hungarian-language broadcasts eliminated the March of Time type of treatment immediately; the multivoice technique was toned down and used only for variety; announcers were instructed to be completely factual and free of theatrical effects; Columbia was abandoned as a theme and no music used for themal purposes.

Suggestion.

INDOCHINA

The Legation suggested that the sentiments expressed in a speech made by General Nguyen-Van-Tahanh be used to excellent advantage in VOA programs to Vietnam.

Action. The speech was quoted as requested by the Vietnamese-language VOA.

KOREA

Suggestion. The monitor in Korea reported that the commentary on a Koreanlanguage show on January 18 was powerful in content but that the commentator's voice was ineffective.

Action.-Upon receipt of the information the commentator was immediately replaced by a more suitable announcer.

FRANCE

Suggestion. The ECA officer in Paris called IBD on January 8 suggesting that the French-language VOA play up a 1945 issue of the Communist newspaper L'Humanite praising General Eisenhower.

Action.-Three hours after receipt this request had been complied with. (The purpose, of course, was to show the complete reversal of the Communist Party since 1945 from praise to vituperation.)

FINLAND

Suggestion. The American Legation in Helsinki, giving its reaction to the first broadcast of the VOA in Finnish, informed IBD that the sentences in the newscast were occasionally too long, some of the speakers spoke too hurriedly and excitedly, and one of the female speakers sounded like a schoolgirl reading her lesson.

Action.-VOA immediately cut down on the length of sentences, trained the speakers to speak more calmly, removed from the cast the female speaker who had been criticized, and carried out the suggestions made by the Embassy.

IRAN

Suggestion. The Embassy urged heavy play be given by VOA to Entezam and the role of Iran in the United Nations.

Action.-VOA complied with this immediately and has touched on this subject at least once a week since the request was received.

Suggestion. In June the Embassy requested authorization to prepare, translate, and publish pamphlets on health care, several agricultural subjects, and nutrition; also, to publish a book in Persian on American history. Action.-Funds for this purpose were authorized within 3 days. Suggestion. In July, Embassy proposed production of films in Iran. Action.-Department authorized funds to start project immediately and by September had sent to Iran an expert to prepare film scripts and stories. Cameraman reached Tehran in November. Subjects were suggested and supervised by Embassy proposed extensive follow-up and much larger program. Department concurred and recruited team of eight persons who reached Iran in February.

Suggestion. In February, Embassy suggested hiring the services of a certain American to prepare cartoon and pamphlet materials for the Iranian public. Action.-Department immediately proceeded to negotiate contract with this individual. Its conclusion only awaits clarification of one point by the Embassy. Suggestion.-Embassy requested pictures to illustrate its Persian translation, A History of the United States.

Action. These are now being printed in London.

Suggestion.-Embassy has from time to time requested a large number of copies of the magazine Amerika in the Russian language.

Action. On each occasion the request has been filled. Iran now receives 3,000 copies of each issue instead of 500 received 2 years ago.

81707-51-65

AUSTRIA

Suggestion.-The Legation suggested that shipment of the Russian-language magazine Amerika be increased in order to provide for a greater flow of printed materials to iron curtain DP's in the western zone of Austria and certain other readers of Russian.

Action.-The Department immediately stepped up allocations from 1,000 to 3,000 copies per month.

YUGOSLAVIA

Suggestion. The Embassy recommended that the USIE program in Yugoslavia be increased in order to take advantage of greater opportunities for dissemination of information in that country.

Action. The Department took action to publish a Serbo-Croatian edition of the magazine Amerika; to increase the amount of film and other informational material entering the country; and to raise the number of American personnel there.

NIGERIA

Suggestion.-USIS requested 1,000 copies of Department's Our Foreign Policy by air pouch to counter a Soviet news pamphlet on Korea being distributed in Nigeria.

Action.-Request filled.

ETHIOPIA

Suggestion.-Legation in Addis Ababa, conveyed request from Emperor Haile Selassie that he be furnished with 35 USIE films to be charged against his account.

Action. After discussion with political officers responsible for Ethiopia it was concluded that Department's gift of relatively inexpensive films would be of considerable value to United States relations with that country. Department notified post of ordering of all films for presentation to Emperor.

INCREASE IN TRAVEL

Mr. FLOOD. Let us turn to page 668. I find there that you are asking for an increase of $1,183,820 in travel. Your request this year is $2,393,271. Last year it was $1,209,451. Now, why should there be an increase of that amount comparing those two figures! They look sizable.

Mr. MAY. Sir, the first large item of that increase is the cost of transporting 100 new employees and their families and dependents to the field in fiscal year 1952. There will be 100 more than we moved out this year.

INCREASE IN EMPLOYMENT

Mr. FLOOD. Why the new employees?

Mr. MAY. This represents an increase let me have your question again?

Mr. FLOOD. Why are you getting 100 new employees?

Mr. MAY. We are adding 264 new Americans in fiscal year 1952 but after taking into account the number we have moved in 1951, there will be 100 more persons to be transported to the field at a cost of $157,160.

Mr. FLOOD. Are these new employees that you have already hired and are getting ready to ship? Are they the result of the expansion program we talked about during the current fiscal period?

Mr. MAY. Some have already moved as the result of it and others will be transported to the field early in July. Some of them will be carried over from this year, people we hired too late to get out.

Mr. FLOOD. But you are executing the recruiting program that we have been debating?

Mr. MAY. That is correct, sir.

Mr. FLOOD. These are some of those people?

Mr. MAY. That is right, sir.

Mr. FLOOD. What accounts for the balance of the sizeable increase? That part I can understand. Why the balance and what will be the amount of the balance, about?

Mr. MAY. Well, sir, it is made up of an item of $88,000 for an additional 66 home leaves under the Foreign Service Act. That means the cost of bringing people back home for some 60 days of leave after they have been there in the field for about 2 years.

Mr. FLOOD. Is that statutory or mandatory?

Mr. WILBER. Yes, sir, Mr. Flood.

Mr. MAY. Another item of $70,154 covers 97 more transfers in the service than we anticipate in 1951.

Mr. FLOOD. How do you know that?

Mr. MAY. That is an estimate, sir, and based on the best judgment of the regional bureau people who work with the problem. There is another item, the largest single item being $637,159 for additional travel by overseas personnel, travel in and out of the missions from the principal missions to the subposts, out working with the local groups who are either helping distribute our material or otherwise assisting the program.

Mr. FLOOD. Who will do the traveling?

Mr. MAY. The traveling will be performed by the public affairs officer, by the cultural officer working with the educational organizations concerned with the exchange program, by the press officer, and by many of the local employees connected with the distribution of materials.

MOBILE UNIT OPERATORS

Mr. FLOOD. We have spent some time in the last couple of years discussing the question of the travel of mobile unit operators which is on 676 of your justification. Do you have any comment to make about acceleration or improvement in quality of performance of that program, and secondly, why would there be on the average $100 increase per unit in the travel expenses as between 1951 and 1952, the difference being between 613 and $207,812 for 1951 and 1,702 and $844,971 for 1952. That is the mobile crowd.

Mr. MAY. May I have reference to the page?

Mr. FLOOD. Page 676. That is in the overseas missions.

Mr. MAY. Yes, sir; I would like to explain that if I may.

In 1951 we will have traveling 133 mobile units; those are units that we had at the beginning of the year.

Mr. FLOOD. I know.

Mr. MAY. They will be traveling an average of 180 days apiece at an estimated $1 per diem for the operators. That will cost $95,760. In 1952, those same 133 units will be traveling 240 days on the average at a cost of $127,680. That is 60 additional days' travel for those 133 units. That is $31,920.

The second is an increase which applies to the 152 new units which we are acquiring in the present year. These units, since they are being acquired fairly late in the year will only travel about 90 days at a cost

of $54,720. They will be in full operation in 1952; we consider 240 days full operation. That will cost $145,920, an increase of $91,200. In 1952, sir, we plan to buy 50 additional units and we estimate that we will have those bought in time to be operating 180 days.

Mr. FLOOD. How many units will that be at the end of 1952?

Mr. MAY. We have provided for 335.

Mr. FLOOD. That will be the total score at the end of this year if you get these additional 50?

Mr. MAY. That is correct, sir.

Mr. FLOOD. What do you think about this mobile unit program? Is that number of mobile units under the circumstances with whatever you have in mind in this program sufficient? Have you got this rolling? Have you built a fire under this crowd? Are you satisfied with this? Is this too many? Have you saturated it? Can you do with less? Or what is the story?

IMPORTANCE OF MOBILE UNITS

Mr. HULTEN. Mobile units are particularly important in the areas of the world most important to us because in those areas much of the world is illiterate and motion pictures are your principal medium to reach them. It is important that we get out, as Mr. Barrett has said, to get out of the capitals and into the country, and you can only do that in most cases where you take your power with you and your screen with you and in most places there are no such things as motion pictures, picture projectors or theaters or anything else, or halls we

can use.

Mr. FLOOD. Do you own this equipment?

Mr. HULTEN. We own it and operate it in some cases and in other cases other people operate it for us in a country where we find it useful to operate it through local governments, labor organizations, or whatever, where they can reach people with what appears to be a local story rather than the total American story.

REACTION BY OTHERS

Mr. FLOOD. Is this a good idea? Does anybody else think so besides you people? Do you have evaluation as to the effects? What do you hear about the thing out in the sticks?

Mr. HULTEN. We have wonderful reports from the mobile units. I believe you saw some operating in Mexico yourself, Mr. Chairman. You saw how these people who had rarely, if ever, seen motion pictures responded to the messages. It is not only a great social occasion for them but as you say a chance to reach them in ways that they cannot be reached in any other way.

Mr. FLOOD. What about in countries other than the Latin countries? Mr. HULTEN. When you take a place like Iran, for instance, where 90 percent of the people are illiterate and you have villages averaging 1,000 people in a village, these people practically never move around. There are practically no facilities to reach them at all and I have seen these mobile units operate there and I must say that I was myself extremely impressed with the effectiveness.

Mr. FLOOD. Will you insert in the record at this point some comment by some responsible authority, at least one, which shows that

this is all right, and if you have any criticism of it, put one criticism in, of the same nature.

Mr. HULTEN. We will be glad to give you our comments and criticisms.

(The requested material follows:)

FIELD REACTIONS TO THE USIE MOBILE UNIT PROGRAM

Comment from field posts on the USIE mobile unit program has been wholly favorable. All posts have welcomed the units as enabling broad geographic coverage of their areas with films and other USIE materials. Many requests have been received for additional units to expend their operation.

The following excerpts from field despatches approved by the chiefs of mission, are typical of reports received on the mobile unit program.

India. "The units' value to the information program in India is indisputable. By means of it, many people can be reached who otherwise might only know the work of USIE second-hand * * *. In general the unit's equipment is first class."

France. The USIE office at Bordeaux reported: "No other phase of USIE activities has extended the scope and influence of its program more than the film operation. This achievement was largely made possible through the acquisition of a jeep mobile unit, which afforded the mobility needed to service the southwest, largest of the French consular areas."

Greece. The USIE office at Patras reported: "The mobile unit operates to the greatest extent possible throughout the entire area of western Greece. Hampered generally by severe road conditions, it has gone to places where no motor vehicle had ever been before. Besides performing a feat of penetration, carrying * a load of printed and picture material, it has held a rigorous schedule. From July 1 to October 31 the unit was on the road up to 90 percent of the time * showing films to an estimated 59,630 spectators

During 1949 a number of missions due to local conditions requested some modification of the mobile unit originally supplied by the Department. In these instances the Department supplied the necessary parts and the adjustments were made at the field post.

Under the expanded program for 1951 many of the mobile units are to go to areas where hitherto the Department has not had a mobile unit program. To insure maximum effectiveness in the redesigning of the unit for these new areas the Division requested recommendations from all overseas missions. These recommendations have formed the basis upon which this year's mobile unit has been designed.

INCREASE IN TRANSPORTATION OF THINGS

Mr. FLOOD. The item "transportation of things," appears on page 677 of the breakdown of your estimates by object of expenditure. Why are you requesting an increase of $679,418. Why that much for transportation of things?

Mr. MAY. The transportation of things item as it appears on page 677 represents first some $827,359 for transportation between the United States and the field related to the movement of personnel.

Mr. FLOOD. The same people you were talking about under travel? Mr. MAY. Exactly the same people, sir.

Mr. FLOOD. Does that account for the whole figure?

Mr. MAY. Yes, sir; that accounts for $827.000 of the 1952 figure and $292,000 of the increase. The remainder of that appears on page 678. It represents the shipments of supplies purchased in the United States to the missions, cost of transportation.

Mr. FLOOD. Outside of the last item you just mentioned, for the balance for the increase in transportation of things, your reasons are the same as those given for the increase in travel?