The Press: Lesson from Britain

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Last week when Aviation, one of the most authoritative of U. S. aeronautical publications, came out with its annual directory number, it printed carefully censored descriptions of new war planes like the Army's Bell Airacobra, Navy's Consolidated flying boats. Reason: the Army & Navy had labeled as military secrets such matters as performance and armament of new flying equipment. And, like the rest of the U. S. press, Aviation was trying to cooperate.

About the time Aviation went to its subscribers, the secret figures became public property all the same. They were printed in the British The Aeroplane—which operates under strict wartime censorship. The Aeroplane's information, passed by the British Air Ministry, gave chapter & verse on performance, bomb capacity and armament for 36 up-to-date airplanes. All are being sold to Britain, most are used by U. S. fighting services.

To prevent voluntary self-censorship from making such a thing happen again (TIME, Feb. 17), able George Catlett Marshall, Army Chief of Staff, had already laid his plans. Last week he completed a thoroughgoing overhaul of his press section, gave it a rank and standing it had never had before. As its new head he appointed one of his crack officers: natty, cosmopolitan Major General Robert Charlwood Richardson. Taken from command of the First Cavalry Division, West Pointer Richardson was sorry to leave his beloved horses, but he knew that the new job was more important. And with a Major General at the head desk, newsmen could soundly hope that from now on there will be less fumbling in the Army information section, fewer appeals to keep mum about open secrets.