A report on the Office of censorship
Published just three months after the end of World War II, this government document from The Office of Censorship outlines the organization’s structure and administrative history. In his introduction, the Director of this Office makes clear that “censorship in a democratic country is fraught with serious difficulties and grave risk,” and that it should only be used during war lest American citizens be reduced “to a state of intellectual slavery.” In order to prevent sensitive information from being acquired by the United States’ enemies during the war, the Office of Censorship monitored the press, telegraphic cables, the mail, and radio broadcasts. This was accomplished through direct intervention by the military as well as with self-censorship by private industry. The office was led by Byron Price, who was working as the Executive News Editor and Acting General Manager of the Associated Press when America entered the war in 1941.
United States. Office of War Censorship.
A Report on the Office of Censorship. Washington, U.S.: Govt. Print. Off., 1945.
Lehigh University Catalog Record: https://asa.lib.lehigh.edu/asa/Record/221469
A version of this text has been digitized and is available through the Internet Archive.