Censorship and Other Restrictions
Thus far we have surveyed the discretionary power granted government agencies, consistently with national defense to withhold information from the public, the courts or the legislature, and those powers accorded the executive branch to regulate or conditionally promote propaganda activities of foreign nations. The following section pertaining to censorship and other restrictions may be differentiated from the foregoing as follows. Whereas the first section dealt with government agencies as custodians of information, here we are concerned with limitations imposed upon the efforts of individuals and groups to secure information or to disseminate specified kinds of information which they may possess.
The relevant statutes are reviewed under three headings. Certain statutes prohibit the acquisition or attempted acquisition of specified types of defense data. Others prohibit the dissemination of specified kinds of information, or the communication of prescribed opinions. A third group of statutes reflect the disposition of Congress to empower the government to review and edit personal communications media.
Illegal Acquisition of Defense Information: In January 1938 the President was authorized to define certain vital military and naval installations or equipment requiring protection against the general dissemination of information about them. It became unlawful thereafter to make any photograph, sketch, picture, drawing, map, or graphical representation of these vital military and naval installations or equipment without first obtaining the permission of the commanding officer of the installation concerned. If permission were granted to anyone seeking information, it was necessary to submit to censorship whatever information had been obtained.[484]
Dissemination of Information and Proscribed Opinions: The same 1938 statute also made it illegal to reproduce, publish, sell, or give away data without first obtaining official permission.[485] The Alien Registration Act of 1940 proscribed the advocacy of certain opinions. It is unlawful for any person, with intent to interfere with, impair, or influence the loyalty, morale, or discipline of the military or naval forces of the United States by seeking to advise, counsel, urge, or in any manner cause insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military or naval forces of the United States. And it is unlawful for any person to distribute any written or printed matter which advises, counsels, or urges insubordination, disloyalty or mutiny.[486] This Act also makes it unlawful to knowingly or willfully seek the overthrow of any government in the United States by direct or indirect action. Equally proscribed is any effort which has as its goal the assassination of any governmental official.[487] Conspiracy to commit any of the acts enumerated in the statute is also unlawful.[488]
The Export Control Act of 1949 gave the President power to prohibit or curtail the export of technical data.[489] Also pertinent is the stipulation in an August 1953 statute permitting the government to lend certain vessels to Italy, which prohibited the transmission to Italy of information, plans, advise, material, documents, blueprints, or other papers bearing a secret or top secret classification.[490]
In 1951 legislation was enacted prohibiting disclosure of classified information. It is unlawful knowingly and willingly to communicate, furnish or transmit to an unauthorized person the following categories of classified information: (1) codes, cipher or the cryptographic system of the United States or any foreign government; (2) the design, construction, use, maintenance, or repair of any device, apparatus, or appliance used or prepared or planned for use by the United States or any government for cryptographic or communication intelligence purposes; (3) the communication intelligence activities of the United States or any foreign government; or (4) obtained by the processes of communication intelligence from the communications of any foreign government knowing the same to have been obtained by such processes.[491] Violators of this law can be fined up to $10,000, be imprisoned for ten years, or suffer the imposition of both penalties.[492]
The Communist Organization Registration Act of July 1954 requires organizations found by the Subversive Activities Control Board to be Communist-action or Communist-front organizations to provide the Attorney General a listing of all printing presses and machines.[493] The list of different kinds of presses is very extensive.[494]
Censorship of Communications Media: The War Powers Act of December 1941 specifically empowered the President to establish censorship of communications between the United States and foreign countries. During the existence of the war, the President, at his discretion, established rules and regulations for the censorship of communications by mail, cable, radio, or other means of transmission passing between the United States and any foreign country. The authority to prescribe the rule by which censorship would be applied, extended to communications carried by any vessel or other means of transportation touching at any port, place, or territory of the United States and bound to or from any foreign country.[495]
A month later the Communications Act of 1934 was amended to enable the President during time of war or threat of war to regulate or close any or all facilities or stations for wire communication within the jurisdiction of the United States.[496] Nearly ten years later this power was extended to any or all stations or devices capable of emitting electromagnetic radiations within the jurisdiction of the United States.[497] The power to close stations for radio communication within the jurisdiction of the United States included those suitable as navigational aids beyond five miles of the United States.[498]