British Security Coordination

[Salv]

There's an interesting article in the Weekend magazine with todays Guardian newspaper about a covert British operation in the US in 1940-41 known as British Security Coordination.

At a time when there was widespread support for Nazi Germany among American industrialists (Henry Ford, Irénée Du Pont, Thomas J Watson of IBM for example), and America as a whole was decidedly isolationist, the aims of BSC were to spread negative news stories, disinformation and black propaganda about Nazi Germany. The idea was that this would paint the Nazis in a bad enough light that the American people would vote for US involvement in WW2.

An office was set up in the Rockefeller Center and estimates of the number of staff involved nationwide were as high as 3000. It ran its own radio station, WRUL, and a press agency, the Overseas News Agency (ONA) and seemed to have been very succesful, with nobody ever suspecting the extent of its work. Ultimately of course, with the attack on Pearl Harbour, BSCs activities were not needed, but it makes for a fascinating story.

 

[Feraud]

Thanks for posting this Salv! It is quite an amazing story on so many levels. Whether it be Britian's desperation to bring the U.S. into WWII on their side, America's extreme complaceny in the face of a world encompassing war, or concepts of isolationism.

The BSC is something we should all be aware of and take any necessary lessons for our society today.

 

[Haversack]

Perception management is something of a taboo topic here in the US. There appears to be a collective bias against publicly acknowledging that we can be manipulated through the media. Whenever the topic comes up, it seems to always be met by a variety of pundits claiming that Americans are too intelligent to be influenced by what are purely entertainments. (But then how do you explain advertising). The actions of the BSC during the war and the earlier, less official actions of the Hollywood British Colony during the 1930s are not only something which may have happened many years ago in a good cause, but are distasteful and go against our national self-image of being clear-eyed individualists who are immune to subtle skullduggery. Stories about perception management of the US by foreigners do not tend to get much traction here.

Regardless, our image of us being immune is a myth and can make us particularly susceptable to emotional manipulation. In particular, fear-mongering has a long history in this culture. Whether it is foreigners, B.O., Free Silver, Pink Bristles in your Toothbrush, fluoridated water, or the Demon Rum, there have always been bogeymen which been used to scare the public into taking/not taking a particular action. (And, of course, some bogeymen are real.) Debate about particular bogeyman can be fast and furious. However, what is rarely addressed in a public venue, are the strategies, techniques and tactics used to manage the public's opinion.

The existence of the BSC is not surprising. The British government has made subtle but extensive use of artists and literature for propaganda and perception management purposes since at least the First World War. Kipling had a hand in creating "black propaganda' depicting German atrocities in Belgium. Ivor Novello was sent to Sweden by Winston Churchill in 1918 on a pro-British goodwill tour to counter pro-German sentiments. During the 1930s prior to the Secend World War breaking out, the British Colony in Hollywood had several influential actors, agents, writers, and directors who were tasked to craft films which would influence the American public to be pro-British when the expected war with Germany broke out. Rumors exist that Churchill had a hand in writing the dialogue for both _Fire Over England_ and _That Hamilton Woman_.

In this day and age, it is interesting to view movies from the 1930s and 40s with the added knowledge that some were created to influence public opinion in a variety of ways. In many cases this intent to influence is obvious to our hind-sight-gifted eyes. You have to wonder however, if this intent was as obvious to its intended audience, and even more so, if current movies have similar intents to which we are not conscious.

Haversack.

 

[Steven180]

Exceptional thread that has a great amount of potential...

The BSC conducted a far more ranging variety of activities as well. Affecting U.S. public opinion was essential and a priority but influence on government officials, public media, affluential personalities, and great industrialists were all part of that effort. No need to take offense ant this single historical view of a very pragmatic and common effort in any relationship. Winston Churchill said it best..."There are no permanent allies, only permanent interests." This is the world of international relations.

An exceptional book called "The Irregulars" was published in the last year or two and also touches on British influence in the U.S. It very well documents the efforts in both professional and personal relationships developed during before and during WWII in the continental U.S. and the British Isles.

Also highly recommend the book "Intrepid" as well for an exciting, true, although possibly slightly embellished, story of the director of the BSC.
M.