[Marxism] Fwd from Jim Craven: CIA Document on Co-opting Academia

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

> [ The CIA asked University of California administrator Earl Clinton
> Bolton, who was spending some time at CIA headquarters, to suggest ideas
> on how to improve relations between the Agency and academia. ]
>
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p01.gif>Academia 01, p.1
>
> 5 August 1968
> MEMORANDUM FOR: [deleted]
> SUBJECT: Agency-Academic Relations
>
> This is an attempt to make some observations and suggestions about
> Agency-academic relations. In doing so I am grateful for the stimulus
> furnished by your outline. Although I believe I have addressed myself to
> most of the questions you have raised I have done so in free form rather
> than by a point by point consideration. I have also used "head notes" for
> purposes of organization and in an attempt to highlight the crucial
> questions in the subject.
>
> Justifying an Agency-Academic Relationship: Let me stress at the outset
> that I believe Agency-academic relations are for the most part very good.
> Though I have no quantitative data to support such a conclusion my guess
> is that 99% of the members of the academy would be willing to assist the
> Agency if properly and skillfully approached, and that only a small
> fraction of that other 1% would be angered by an invitation to assist or
> would attempt to embarrass the Agency in any way.
>
> However, on occasion when a university or an individual has acknowledged
> any contact with the Agency there has been some outcry by a few vocal
> members of the academic community.
>
> In a later part of this paper I suggest "an affirmative program" designed
> to improve the Agency's reputation in academic circles and thus decrease
> the risks (costs) of association with the Agency. However, until either
> the passage of time or an image bolstering plan changes the cliches of the
> moment an educational institution or individual electing to assist the
> Agency may be on the defensive.
>
> In my view the best way to defend association with the Agency when such a
> defense is necessary is:
> 1. By relating work for the Agency to one of the traditional functions of
> a university; and
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p02.gif>Academia 01, p.2
> 2. By basing the defense or rejoinder on long established academic values.
>
> The Functions of a University: There is almost universal agreement that
> universities do (and properly should) engage in the following basic functions:
> 1. The preservation and transmission of knowledge to their constituency
> (i.e. the so-called teaching function); and
> 2. The testing of that which is currently accepted as "truth" and the
> discovery of new truth (i.e. the research function); and
> 3. The performance for society's benefit of those functions which can best
> (or exclusively) be performed by a university (i.e. the public service
> function)
>
> Authorities will differ as to whether a sub-function e.g. the training of
> a leadership elite to be innovative and responsive should be included
> under "1" or "3" above, but there is little disagreement that what higher
> education is all about is encompassed within these general goals.
>
> The Agency should phrase its requests to academia in such a way that the
> service being sought relates as clearly and directly as possible to one of
> these traditional functions and when necessary the university and
> individual scholar should explain involvement with the Agency as a
> contribution to one of these proper academic goals. It should also be
> stressed that when an apologia is necessary it can best be made: (1) by
> some distant academic who is not under attack, (2) in a "respectable"
> publication of general circulation (e.g. Harpers, Saturday Review, Vital
> Speeches, etc.), and (3) with full use of the jargon of the academy (as
> illustrated below).
>
> Traditional Mores of the Academic: Every profession develops a certain
> ethical or philosophical penumbra which is more or less sacred and which
> protects from attack the most vulnerable or least understood rites of that
> profession. This body of doctrine usually develops by "common law" and is
> subsequently codified. (Incidentally the codified dogma never precisely
> articulates the full scope of the protective doctrines; hence there is
> sufficient vagueness in the total traditions of the profession to provide
> a skillful polemicist with formidable ammunition for defense.)
>
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p03.gif>Academia 01, p.3
>
> Two doctrines fiercely protected by the academy are "academic freedom" and
> "privilege and tenure." The former is the absolute right of the scholar to
> investigate any subject within his competence, in any lawful way, at any
> time. The latter doctrine holds that a fully initiated member of the
> profession has certain irrevocable privileges, including but not limited
> to, the right to continue his association with the university until
> retirement without fear of termination except for a very few egregious
> offenses.
>
> When attacked for aiding the Agency the academic (or institution) should
> base a rejoinder on these sacred doctrines. For example, a professor's
> right to undertake classified research is unassailable if he stands on the
> ground of academic freedom and his privileges as a scholar. And he should
> be reminded that although his derogators may undertake a good deal of no
> loud rhetoric they really cannot impair his tenure.
>
> Contracts and Grants: I have discussed [several words deleted] the matter
> of research arrangement between the Agency and academic world. Here are
> some of my further ideas on the subject.
> 1. Shouldn't the Agency have an insulator such as Rand or IDA? Such
> entities have quite good acceptance in academia, do excellent work and
> provide real protection against "blow back." Such an independent
> corporation should of course have a ringing name (e.g. Institute for a
> Free Society), should do work for the entire intelligence community, and
> should really have a sufficiently independent existence so that it can
> take the heat on some projects if necessary.
> 2. In my opinion we are in a cycle in which we are moving away from
> institutional involvement in classified contracts toward a time when no
> classified research will be allowed on campus even by a professor acting
> on his own. The Agency might want to try to anticipate this trend by
> offering off-campus leased space to scholars doing work for the Agency.
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p04.gif>Academia 01, p.4
> 3. The indirect cost rate which is allowed by BOB Circular A-21 is
> regarded by academic people as being unfair to the university. This
> "overhead" rate does not allow adequate recovery of actual hidden costs.
> Your contracting officer ought to be encouraged to adjust the established
> rate upward by a point or two as an incentive to institutions of higher
> education to take work.
> 4. As a general rule contracts and grants should be made only in response
> to proposals which "originate" with the principal investigator on the
> campus. The real initiative might be with the Agency but the apparent or
> record launching of the research should, wherever possible, emanate from
> the campus.
> 5. (Here is a declaration against interest.) It seems to me that there are
> few instances in which it is indispensable or even necessary to contract
> with an academic entity rather than the principal investigator directly.
> Therefore because of the increased complexity of the transaction of the
> institution is involved I would suggest that virtually all of your
> contracts and grants be made directly to the individual. Perhaps personal
> service agreements could be used to replace traditional contracts and
> grants for sponsored research.
> 6. Would it be possible to substitute some new designations for words such
> as "classified," "secret," "confidential," etc? Perhaps labels such as
> "limited access research," "not to be discussed with others without prior
> permission of the Agency," etc. could be used. My point is that such terms
> as classified research have become so emotionally charged that they
> provoke an irrational response before substantive content is even considered.
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p05.gif>Academia 01, p.5
>
> "The Image": An Affirmative Program: Good public relations means excellent
> performance publicly appreciated. Because of the nature of the Agency's
> work discussions about performance must be limited, and efforts to gain
> public appreciation minimized. However I think it is possible to improve
> acceptance among that "public" which is the academic world.
>
> To accomplish such a result would require a positive, long-term public
> relations plan. My impression is that the Agency has excellent press
> relations, but is not affirmatively interested (probably intentionally) in
> overall public relations. As to the academic community I would suggest
> that a very well considered, affirmative public relations program be
> developed.
>
> The evolution of a public relations plan follows well recognized steps.
> These steps are suggested by the following questions.
> 1. How do we appear to the target group (academia) today?
> 2. How do we want to appear to that target group five years hence?
> 3. What steps should we take to get from phase 1 to 2?
>
> It is of course unlikely that the goal in 3 above will just happen by
> accident; the goal is obviously more likely to be reached if there is a plan.
>
> It is difficult to suggest implementing techniques without first knowing
> the precise future image the Agency would like to have in the academic
> world. However, I believe the following suggestions would generally
> improve that image among academicians.
> 1. Follow a plan of emphasizing that CIA is a member of the national
> security community (rather than the intelligence community) and stress the
> great number of other agencies with which the Agency is allied in
> advancing national interests. Several such agencies (FBI, AEC, Secret
> Service, State Department, etc.) have spent much time, money and thought
> on telling their story. In my view the Agency will benefit by some
> "transfer" effect.
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p06.gif>Academia 01, p.6
> 2. Establish at Yale the Walter Bedell Smith or William J. Donovan
> Lectures or Chair on Intelligence as an Instrument of National Policy.
> (Try in as many ways as possible to establish the study of intelligence as
> a legitimate and important field of inquiry for the academic scholar.)
> 3. Invite qualified and sympathetic scholars to take their sabbaticals at
> the Agency. They would work not as consultants, for that is a very
> different function, but on subjects and in a manner traditionally followed
> by a professor on his sabbatical.
> 4. Permit a few carefully nominated and selected doctoral candidates to
> spend a year at the Agency working on their dissertations. The
> unclassified materials in the library are a rich source of materials for
> genuine academic research. The candidate would of course have to recognize
> the Agency's right to review the finished document for accidental leaks.
> 5. Provide a handsomely funded post doctoral one-year opportunity for
> selected scholars. (The John McCone Fellowships?)
> 6. Publicize any effort of the Agency to make scarce materials available
> to scholars. (Could the story of the Hoover Institution -- Agency
> arrangement be told by a distinguished scholar of Chinese affairs in a
> publication of general interest to academics?)
> 7. Stress in recruiting, articles and speeches that the Agency is really a
> university without students and not a training school for spies. There is
> as much academic freedom within the walls of the building and among those
> competent on a given subject as on any campus I know. (I haven't detected
> the slightest tendency on the part of anyone to resist saying what he thinks.)
> <http://www.cia-on-campus.org/gifs/ac01p07.gif>Academia 01, p.7
> 8. Encourage Agency representatives who attend academic meetings to
> clearly identify their affiliation.
> 9. Do all recruiting off campus and try to time these visits so that the
> probability of reaction is decreased e.g. during the summer, between
> semesters, after the last issue of the student paper is printed for the
> semester, etc.

Louis Proyect
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