"Information and education are powerful forces in support of peace. Just as war begins in the minds of men, so does peace. " President Dwight Eisenhower, January 27, 1958
POLICY IDEA:
The primary idea behind this policy is to protect the American public against bad information, propaganda, and irresponsible media practices.
To do so, resurrect the United States Information Agency under a new mission: to protect the quality and integrity of our domestic information structure.
- USIA 1.0 Mission:
USIA 2.0 MISSION:
-
Protect and defend the information landscape within the United States in the best interests of the American public.
-
If there are whistleblowers who have revelations regarding misinformation being levied upon the American public, the USIA 2.0 would be compelled to move with that information (in conjunction with other federal departments). The USIA would work to ensure that their revelations could be protected and eventually shared with the public.
-
If it is found that other areas of the US government are propagandizing the American public (e.g. the intelligence agencies), it would be the mandate of the USIA 2.0 to participate in countering these measures in cooperation with other government agencies.
-
If it is found that information vendors and publishers are developing monopolies that are preventing the free flow of information, it would be the agency’s responsibility to make that known so legal action could be taken against these profiteers who are betraying their vocational duties.
-
If media outlets have concern about corporate capture of their outlets, they could raise these concerns to this agency.
-
Advise the President and U.S. government policy-makers on trends in the information landscape, evolutions in information science technology, concerns in the field of information science and journalism, etc.
**In 1999 this agency was swallowed by the US Department of State. If this agency were to be resurrected, my policy suggestion includes moving it out from under the umbrella of the DOS. It must be an independent agency.
DON’T WE WANT LESS NOT MORE GOVERNMENT?
I agree with Elon Musk that government agencies ought to be rolled back. However, the threat of propaganda and the desire to manipulate the free flow of information will never go away. All this policy idea wants to suggest, is whether a public agency with the focus solely on protecting the information landscape would be in the best interests of the American public.
With good information you are powerful, with bad information you are open to manipulation. Information is power. Information is freedom. Mostly, I believe in keeping government out of our lives, but this agency could potentially improve the quality of our broadcasters/journalism as well as defend the consumers of information at the national level.
Given that this agency already existed, my hope is that makes it easier to get this ball rolling faster.
LIBRARIANS, THE SUPERHEROES YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF:
I work in the field of information science, and my belief is that librarians are needed now more than ever. Librarian training is no longer just about how to work in a library. It’s about applying the skills and vocational duties that have always belonged to librarians, in new contexts that have popped up in our Information Age.
The librarians, historically speaking, are the stewards of information. We know how to protect it for posterity, how to curate it to highlight what’s happening (many librarian trained people go into museum work), we know how to classify it to make easily discoverable, and we are now being trained on the cyberattack side of things. By nature, our work is bipartisan. Why am I saying all of this? Because these are the types of professionals I would love USIA 2.0 to employ. Not just people who come up from journalistic circles, or public policy circles, but people who have been trained in information.
RELEVANT LINKS:
-
Records of the United States Information Agency (RG 306): (Records of the United States Information Agency (RG 306) | National Archives)