College and Research Libraries


By C A R L W . H I N T Z 

Which Propaganda? 
The librarian of the University of Mary-
land believes that as pressure groups mul-
tiply in number and intensity the problem 
of "which propaganda' shall be admitted 
to libraries becomes increasingly acute. 
Exclusion, education, and censorship fail 
to provide clear-cut solutions hence useful-
ness must of necessity be adopted as the 
guiding principle for admission. 

THE FIRST overt act of the Royal A i r Force in the present European W a r , 
namely, the bombardment of German ter-
ritory with leaflets rather than bombs, 
leads one to believe that the effectiveness 
of "paper-bullets" is now recognized as a 
major weapon of war. During the past 
f e w years we have undoubtedly witnessed 
their use in time of peace on a constantly 
increasing scale due to a variety of fac-
tors, not the least of which are the ever 
growing facilities for the communication 
of ideas. From all quarters, the "vested 
interests," labor, and proponents of vari-
ous political concepts seek to influence 
thought and contribute drops to the shower 
of propaganda which drizzles upon the 
public mind. A n d now, the present Euro-
pean situation with its American reper-
cussions will undoubtedly bring forth a 
new crop of materials as belligerents, iso-
lationists, and interventionists seek to 
sway public opinion. 

Of one fact we can be very sure. T h e 
propaganda of today and of the future 
will be f a r more subtle and insidious than 
heretofore, consequently more effective 

unless steps be taken to counteract its 
efficacy. T h e old stories of mutilated 
women and children, crucified soldiers, 
and human soap factories are apt to be 
taken with grains of salt in view of the 
excellent studies and consequent exposures 
of propaganda techniques during the last 
W o r l d W a r . Indeed, one of the most 
encouraging signs of the day in this con-
nection is the awareness of the general pub-
lic that propagandists are at work on a 
large scale. T h a t a problem exists is evi-
denced by the number of articles and books 
on the subject written during the past f e w 
years. T h e Institute for Propaganda 
Analysis, founded in 1 9 3 7 , is another sign 
of the growing interest, even the need, for 
more systematic study and effort to coun-
teract the worst effects of propaganda. In 
our professional journals we find repeated 
evidence of awareness of the problem. 
T h e question facing librarianship is— 
what course of action shall be adopted in 
handling the propaganda menace? Shall 
we withdraw into our ivory towers and let 
events take their course, as we have so 
often done in the past, putting implicit 
faith in the maxim " L e t all sides be repre-
sented"? O r shall we—can we—formu-
late a policy which smacks of constructive 
action ? 

Propaganda Types 

In attempting to pose various aspects of 
the question some consideration must be 
given to the nature and types of propa-
ganda. Of many definitions the most apt 

170 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



seems to be one phrased by the late Calvin 
Coolidge, taken from Squires' recent arti-
cle in the Library Journal.1 Coolidge said : 

Propaganda seeks to present part of the 
facts, to distort their relations, and to prove 
conclusions which could not be drawn from 
a complete and candid survey of all the 
facts. Of real education and real informa-
tion we cannot get too much; but of propa-
ganda we cannot have too little. 

T h e reason for using this definition in 
preference to several others is the dis-
tinction drawn between propaganda and 
education—a distinction which must be 
recognized in dealing with this problem. 
T h a t we should have a formal definition 
of some kind for our own use is important; 
otherwise we may simply fall into the 
habit of considering as propaganda any-
thing with which we do not personally 
agree or which runs counter to the gen-
erally accepted ways and thinking of the 
dominant groups in society. 

Furthermore in considering propaganda 
in the light of the definition given, or any 
other for that matter, it would seem that 
a distinction might well be made between 
"good," " h a r m f u l , " and "innocuous," or 
relatively innocuous, material. 

A s f a r as " g o o d " propaganda is con-
cerned we usually call it "educating the 
public." W e propagandize on behalf o f -
libraries, the Red Cross, the Community 
Chest, and a dozen other projects, yet we 
never think of ourselves as being the vil-
lains of the piece. These causes are gen-
erally accepted as worth while today—but, 
how much of the attitude held toward 
them now can be attributed to propaganda 
in the past? W e accept such propaganda 
today—do our bit to help these causes 
along—because they have attained a cer-

1 Squires, J . Duane. "Credulity or Skepticism." 
Library Journal 64:628. Sept. 1 , 1939. 

MARCH, 1940 

tain position in our society. W o u l d it be 
too much to say that in so doing we prac-
tice, by implication at least, a reverse 
censorship by elevating some propaganda 
to the level of education? However, the 
problem is not concerned primarily with 
this type but with the remaining two cate-
gories. 

T h e r e is a certain religious group with 
headquarters in Zion, 111. According 
to this sect the world is not round but flat. 
Presumably this group propagandizes to a 
certain extent but, to all appearances, such 
doctrine is harmless or relatively so. Ulti-
mately, of course, any opinion such as this 
may be considered harmful in that it sets 
one group against another. Similarly in 
the case of anti-evolution. Harmless, ex-
cept that the group sponsoring it may be-
come strong enough to secure the passage 
of legislation affecting teaching in the 
schools, as was the case in Tennessee a 
f e w years ago. In contrast with this, 
however, we have " h a r m f u l " or dangerous 
propaganda, the doctrines of Communism, 
Fascism, and National Socialism, for in-
stance, which, if successful, will result in 
radically altering the concept of the state 
and democracy which we presumably hold 
today. Propaganda of this type, setting 
forth a particular doctrine may make that 
doctrine a reality, whereas statements that 
the world is flat will not alter the shape 
of the globe no matter how many people 
believe it, unless one adopts the somewhat 
Pollyanna-ish attitude that thinking makes 
it so. Of course, there is always the possi-
bility, as has been pointed out, that some 
seemingly innocuous doctrine might ulti-
mately result in restrictions on religious 
liberty and academic freedom. F o r the 
present though, it would seem that this 
distinction might well stand as between the 
immediate and possible, and the ultimate 

171 



though improbable, results of these two 
types of propaganda. 

Exclusion, Education, or Censorshipf 

Policy in the past has been grounded 
principally on the classic attitude of hav-
ing all sides represented subject to certain 
limitations with regard to good taste, style, 
and manner of presentation. T h a t these 
limitations are apt to be ineffective is 
obvious in the light of the newer methods 
of propaganda. A s propagandists become 
increasingly aware of the importance of 
format—as they already have to a certain 
extent—as they become increasingly subtle 
in their presentation of the facts and in 
choice of channels, these limitations tend 
to lose whatever effectiveness they may 
once have had. Hence it seems important, 
at this time, to pose various possibilities 
looking toward redefinition of policy by 
considering briefly the various means which 
might be adopted in handling the propa-
ganda problem. 

A drastic step would be to attempt to 
exclude all propaganda from library 
shelves. This, however, is neither prac-
tical nor wise. Such material, in the first 
place, has a degree of historical value if 
nothing else. T h e excellent studies of 
propaganda and propaganda techniques 
which are in existence today would not 
have been possible without the provision 
of a body of material for research. Sec-
ond, such material has immediate value in 
certain instances. Several years ago one 
of the collegiate debate topics was on the 
Japanese-Manchukuo question. Those 
students who were to uphold the Japanese 
invasion of Manchukuo as justified would 
have been sorely pressed for material had 
it not been for the booklets setting forth 
the Japanese case. Furthermore, exclu-
sion would be practical only for such ma-

terial as came in the form of separates and 
this would not be complete by any means, 
for frequently articles appearing in reputa-
ble magazines are in reality propaganda. 
Short of removing the offending pages 
there is no way to prevent such material 
from entering libraries. From the stand-
point of practicality then, exclusion is not 
the answer even if it were wise policy 
and this is seriously in doubt. A s Doob 
points out modern society is badly per-
plexed with regard to the solution of cer-
tain problems which face this unbalanced 
world. A s long as problems exist we shall 
have propaganda—on the part of those 
trying to bring about reforms and of those 
who are trying to prevent them. By and 
large, propaganda to be successful must be 
of the type which people will support. 
T h e efforts of the N e w Y o r k Society for 
the Suppression of Vice are increasingly 
less successful as America tends to out-
grow this type of self-flagellation, whereas 
the American Association for Social Se-
curity is beginning to achieve its aim in a 
society now becoming ripe for old age pen-
sions.2 It is this latter statement which 
bears emphasis. Propaganda undoubtedly 
helped to bring about this "ripeness for old 
age pensions." B y closing libraries to all 
propaganda we would stand for the status 
quo and commit librarianship, tacitly at 
least, to a policy of " n o reforms." 

A second possibility represents the tried 
and perhaps true method of education. 
L e t us educate our students that they may 
be able to weigh the evidence and oppos-
ing arguments in a judicial manner; let 
them be taught to seek all the facts and 
not be satisfied with the glib distortions 
of propagandists. Obviously, most of this 
educative process would have to be done 

2 Doob, Leonard, Propaganda, Its Psychology and 
Technique. Holt, 1 9 3 s , pp. 406-07. 

172 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



by the teaching staff of our institutions, 
as it is being done already to a certain 
extent. But how can librarians aid in 
this campaign of education? One means 
is to have the fundamental works for the 
study of propaganda available as well as 
the histories of propaganda which expose 
the fakes practised on a credulous public 
during the last W o r l d W a r in particular. 
T h e publications of the Institute for 
Propaganda Analysis should not only be 
available but should be publicized. But 
even beyond this point can anything be 
done to emphasize the fact that the printed 
word is by no means sacred—or truthful ? 
Perhaps a note of warning could be placed 
on the cover or the title page indicating 
that the contents should not be taken too 
literally. T h i s would mean a lot of work 
for already heavily burdened staffs but it 
should prove helpful. It has been re-
ported to the writer that this is being 
done in some cases. 

Third Possible Course of Action 

A third possible course of action would 
be the establishment of censorship to 
eliminate the most harmful material. 
Here again certain technical difficulties 
would be encountered as in the first case 
but separates could be weeded out. Apart 
from the technical aspects what of the 
wisdom of censorship ? Any mention of 
the word is apt to raise a tremendous hue 
and cry about the constitutional right of 
free speech and abandonment of the li-
brary's heritage of impartiality. Consider 
the following statement, however: 

While the Library's Bill of Rights 
(A.L.A. Bulletin 33:51, Jan. 1939) states 
that in no case shall selection of books and 
other reading matter for purchase from 
public funds "be based upon the race or na-
tionality, political or religious views of the 
writers" and "as far as available material 

MARCH, 1940 

permits, all sides of controversial questions 
shall be represented equally in the selection 
of books on subjects about which differences 
of opinion exist" librarians must remember 
that they are, in troublous times like these, 
in a unique position to disseminate knowl-
edge and truth. T o conscientiously carry 
out their trust a certain degree of alertness, 
sensitivity to bias and the purely propa-
gandistic, and honest evaluation must be 
practised in the selection and circulation of 
printed materials.3 

T h i s statement rings strangely familiar. 
H o w many times have we been reminded 
of our responsibility and unusual position 
to spread the light of truth ? W h a t better 
way is there of aiding truth than by sup-
pressing untruth ? A s to our heritage of 
impartiality are we actually serving the 
best interests of civilization when, by 
maintaining strict impartiality we even-
tually aid, tacitly at least, in destroying 
that very ideal? In pre-Hitlerian days, 
in all probability, our German brethren 
maintained a policy of impartiality—of 
having all sides, including National So-
cialism, represented. B y so doing German 
librarians passively assisted in spreading 
the Nazi doctrine. By standing for free-
dom of expression they assisted in de-
stroying it for one of the first acts of the 
Hitler regime was to "coordinate" li-
braries. Presumably we are all committed 
to the democratic ideal although we may 
differ in definitions of the American way. 
Does the idea of impartiality and freedom 
of speech, however, create an obligation 
for us to nourish that which is inimical 
to the democratic ideal until the enemy 
grows strong enough to destroy all pre-
tense of freedom of thought and expres-
sion? Critics will arise to question our 

3 Heaps, Willard A . " B o o k s f o r the ' L o n g and 
Calm View' on the Crisis, Its Background and 
Implications to the United States." Booklist 36: 
34, Oct. 1, 1939. 

18 7 



competence to act as arbiters of right and 
wrong were such a policy adopted. Simi-
larly the analogy of fighting for democracy 
only to destroy it in the fighting therefor 
would be used against us but, even so, 
cannot censorship be justified by implica-
tion? Books are selected for libraries 
with a great deal of care and every at-
tempt is made to eliminate, as f a r as pos-
sible, those which are not authoritative, 
accurate, or impartial. B y what token 
should all kinds of material be placed in 
libraries because it comes for the most 
part in the form of donations? So much 
for three possible methods of handling 
propaganda; namely, exclusion, education, 
or censorship. 

Desirability of Establishing Values 

It has already been stated that as long 
as problems remain to be solved in our 
society propaganda will exist. In a chang-
ing society values are bound to change. 
T h e r e can be no absolute truth and as a 
result there must be propaganda. T h e 
question is which propaganda shall we 
accept? T h e reasons for this question are 
many, but unfortunately there is no clear-
cut answer because there are no social 
values which we may automatically accept. 
T h e medical profession, motivated by a 
biological value that life is preferable to 
death, never hesitates to attempt the cure 
of a sick person. But what values are 
there which can scientifically describe the 
best form of government in the same way 
a scientist can describe the best conditions 
for performing a given experiment? 
T h e r e are none. T h e social values which 
exist are those set up by the people them-
selves. It is not too much to think, how-
ever, that some clarification of the issues 
which determine social values is possi-
ble. If leaders in all phases of human 

thought and activity should join in a con-
certed effort it should be possible to 
formulate a set of social values beneficial 
to mankind.4 A s a contribution to our 
long sought after philosophy of librarian-
ship let us take a stand looking toward 
the formation of such a group, aid in 
determining values, and then attempt to 
translate them into reality. Only by re-
sorting to propaganda to cure the ills of 
the world can propaganda be eliminated. 
A n idealistic program, to be sure, but not 
utterly impossible of achievement. 

What of the Presentf 

In the meantime, what of the present? 
Obviously we cannot accept everything— 
we do not accept everything sent to our 
libraries. But still "censorship" is scarcely 
even whispered. M u c h of the material is 
relegated to the wastebasket on grounds 
other than content, no doubt, which does 
relieve the charge of censorship somewhat. 
Concretely speaking, what treatment shall 
be accorded propaganda in libraries con-
sidered strictly from the viewpoint of 
content and on the assumption that space 
is available and staff large enough to 
process every little pamphlet which comes 
to the library? 

T h e primary purpose of the college 
library is to furnish material to support 
the courses of instruction; the university 
library adds the provision of research ma-
terials to its instructional function; and 
the great reference libraries emphasize the 
research activity almost exclusively. Books 
for these three related types of libraries 
are selected basically to perform these 
functions. Is there any reason why the 
same standard should not be applied to the 
treatment of propaganda? Admittedly 
this policy leaves much to the librarian's 

4 Doob. op. cit. pp. 4 1 0 ff. 

174 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES 



judgment but if he is competent to select 
he should also be granted competence to 
reject material. A l t h o u g h this solution 
provides no specific formula whereby 
propaganda can be automatically tested, 
admitted or rejected, it w o u l d seem that 
fundamentally usefulness could be ac-
cepted as the first principle for admission. 
W i t h this as a guide all three types of 
propaganda; namely, " g o o d , " "innocu-
ous," and " h a r m f u l " would be admitted 
in proportion to their usefulness in any 
given type of library. Regardless of policy 
the first t w o types need cause little con-
cern. A s f a r as the third, or " h a r m f u l , " 
type is concerned it w o u l d seem our f u n c -
tion might go beyond education or censor-
ship, even beyond any treatment which 
may be devised for the actual handling 
of this material. 

No Immediate Cause for Alarm 

I t is still generally agreed that " i t can't 
happen here." A s long as this condition 
exists there is no particular cause for 
alarm over the subversive effect of propa-
ganda in our college, university, and ref-
erence libraries for t w o reasons. F i r s t , 
w e are dealing to a certain extent w i t h an 

enlightened clientele and one which has 
been more or less exposed to some "educa-
t i o n " w i t h regard to propaganda. Sec-
ond, propaganda to succeed must have a 
fertile ground. A s long as w e are a 
moderately prosperous, confident, and rea-
sonably w e l l satisfied people w e are not 
apt to fall prey to political or economic 
" i s m s . " So, it w o u l d seem that in trou-
blous times like these it behooves us to 
look beyond the actual treatment accorded 
propaganda; to look, rather, t o w a r d the 
possibility of aiding in the solution of the 
problems which n o w give rise to propa-
ganda, to be keenly aware of the changes 
taking place in our political, economic, 
and social life and, at the first sign of 
danger to the system which has given rise 
to libraries and freedom of thought and 
expression on an unprecedented scale w e 
should be ready to adopt vigorous counter 
measures. A m i d s t all this w e must re-
member that values change and w e cannot 
put ourselves in the position of being 
unalterably opposed to change. A l l 
this w i l l require a keen mind and a 
deep understanding of humanity, but 
the challenge and the prize are 
w o r t h y . 

Reclassification of College and University Libraries 
(Continued from page 164) 

Libraries That Cooperated in the Study 

B r o w n U n i v e r s i t y , Providence 
C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y of A m e r i c a , W a s h i n g -

ton 
C o l b y C o l l e g e , W a t e r v i l l e , M e . 
C o l l e g e of Saint C a t h e r i n e , Saint P a u l 
C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y , Ithaca, N . Y . 
H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y , C a m b r i d g e , M a s s . 
H a v e r f o r d C o l l e g e , H a v e r f o r d , P a . 

I o w a State C o l l e g e , A m e s 
J o h n s Hopkins U n i v e r s i t y , B a l t i m o r e 
N e w Y o r k U n i v e r s i t y , N e w Y o r k 
O h i o State U n i v e r s i t y , C o l u m b u s 
S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y , C a l i f . 
S w a r t h m o r e C o l l e g e , P a . 
T e m p l e U n i v e r s i t y , Philadelphia 
U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a , B e r k e l e y 
U n i v e r s i t y of Cincinnati, Cincinnati 
U n i v e r s i t y of M i c h i g a n , A n n A r b o r 

MARCH, 1940 175