Interesting first item about the Kyl-Lott reviews (Bruce mispells this 
as Kyle-Lott).

**********************************************************************
NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE (Vol. 12, #33; 24 August 2006)
by R. Bruce Craig (editor)
NATIONAL COALITION FOR HISTORY (NCH)
Website at http://www.h-net.org/~nch/
***********************************************************************

1. KYLE-LOTT -- IS THE COST REALLY WORTH IT?
2. CONTROVERSIAL JAPAN FRUS VOLUME RELEASED
3. NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY TO OPEN EXHIBITION AT AIR AND
SPACE MUSEUM
4. BITS AND BYTES: Smithsonian Launches Online Photography Initiative; 
NEH Request for
Proposals; Endangered Battlefield Nominations Sought
5. ARTICLES OF INTEREST: "Museums Set Guidelines for Use of Sacred 
Objects"
(Philanthropy News Digest and New York Times)

1. KYLE-LOTT -- IS THE COST REALLY WORTH IT?
According to a report released last week by the National Security 
Archive (NSA), as part of a congressionally-mandated review of 
previously released historical documents relating to nuclear energy and 
weaponry, the Pentagon and the Energy Department have reclassified as 
national security secrets historical data relating to the size of the 
American nuclear arsenal during the Cold War. The report documents that 
so far the cost of the Kyle-Lott reclassification review to the 
American taxpayer is over $3,313 per page, a figure that has raised the 
eyebrows of government watchdog groups that question the relative 
cost/benefit of the program.

The NSA report details for the public the number of Minuteman missiles 
(1,000), Titan II missiles (54), and submarine-launched ballistic 
missiles (656) in the historic U.S. Cold War arsenal – information that 
had previously been public through the administrations of four 
Secretaries of Defense in the 1960s and 70s but is now blacked out. 
Security classifiers also have also redacted from documents deployment 
information relating to the number of American nuclear weapons in Great 
Britain and Germany -- information that was first declassified in 1999. 
Also blacked out -- details regarding the nuclear deployment 
arrangements with Canada, even though the Canadian government has 
declassified its side of the arrangement.

The congressionally-ordered review was sanctioned under the 1998 
Kyle-Lott amendments. They were crafted in the pre-9/11 era and were 
designed to re-screen documents for inadvertent releases of information 
relating to the American nuclear arsenal. More recently, the costly 
program has been justified in terms of its potential to thwart 
terrorism.

Thus far the Energy Department has spent some $22 million in 
implementing the Kyle-Lott amendments. To that end the department has 
surveyed more than 200 million pages of previously released public 
documents. The program has certainly kept young historians and contract 
researchers employed, but there are serious questions relating to the 
relative cost/benefit of the program and whether America is actually 
any safer as a result of the re-review.

To date, Energy Department screeners have withdrawn a total of 6,640 
pages (.3% of the total pages reviewed) from public access as a result 
of the re-review. This comes to a total per-page cost of $3,313, but 
even this figure is deceptively low: Over two-thirds of the documents 
being withheld are marked with lesser classification rankings than that 
of "Restricted Data (RD)" – documents of prime concern that could 
potentially reveal weapon systems design/fuel information that could 
possibly be of use to a potential terrorist, should such persons 
actually use archival sources to obtain such information. (There has 
never been a documented or even alleged case in which information 
gleaned from any American archival source has been used by a terrorists 
to plan an attack on a Western target.) "It would be difficult to find 
better candidates for unjustifiable secrecy than decisions to classify 
the numbers of U.S. strategic weapons," remarked Archive senior analyst 
Dr. William Burr, who compiled the NSA report.

Agency officials, however, justify the re-review and reclassification. 
According to Bryan Wilkes, a spokesperson for the National Nuclear 
Security Administration, "There's no question that current classified 
nuclear weapons data was out there that we had to take back...by 
today's environment, where there is a great deal of concern about rogue 
nations or terrorist groups getting access to nuclear weapons, this 
[program] makes a lot of sense."

But critics argue there is no national security reason for the 
administration to keep such historical information classified, 
especially since all of it has been publicly available for years. In 
some cases the information had been turned over to America's then 
number one enemy, the Soviet Union, in order to comply with two 
strategic arms reductions treaties.

National Security Archive director Thomas Blanton states, "What's 
really at risk is accountability in government," a view echoed by 
Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists Project on 
Government Secrecy who observed, "we still haven't figured out how to 
do classification policy right, and the government is still botching 
the matter."

2. CONTROVERSIAL JAPAN FRUS VOLUME RELEASED
After over ten years of sometimes heated negotiation between the State 
Department and various governmental intelligence agencies, the 
Department of State History Office (HO) has released a new title in the 
FRUS series: "Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964-1968, Vol 
XXIX, PART 2, JAPAN," the penultimate volume to be published in the 
Johnson administration sub-series. What makes this volume unique is 
that it has been nearly ready for publication for over seven years, but 
owing to a handful of controversial documents relating to covert 
operations in Japan that for years intelligence screeners would not 
permit the HO to include in the volume, PART 2 JAPAN is only now seeing 
the light of day...but minus the intelligence agency covert operations 
documentation.

One of the first things a reader of this volume will notice as 
different is the inclusion of not only the usual "Preface" but also a 
"Note on U.S. Covert Actions" and an "Editor's Note" posted at the 
beginning of the volume. Collectively, the preface and these notices 
serve, in essence, as disclaimers for the HO.

In order to comply with the Congressionally mandated FRUS statute the 
compilers of the series are charged to include in each volume, 
"comprehensive documentation on major foreign policy decisions and 
actions." But apparently, in the case of the second Japan volume, 
because of the intelligence community's concerns, this was not 
possible. Sources inside the HO characterize its preparation as "the 
volume from hell" in that it has been extremely difficult and in some 
cases impossible to get some documents cleared for publication, and, in 
the end, the HO simply gave up trying.

The editors had identified 18 documents in full and nine others with 
excisions of a paragraph or less that the HO considered "key documents 
[or containing important information] regarding major covert actions 
and intelligence activities," however, intelligence security screeners 
would not permit them to be published. After years of negotiation the 
HO was confronted with the option of continuing to hold the publication 
of the volume in perpetual abeyance or go ahead a publish without the 
inclusion of the documents, but instead include an explanatory note. 
Hence, with the blessing of the Advisory Committee on Historical 
Diplomatic Documentation, the decision was made to release the volume 
with a statement laying out the broad contents of the excised documents 
and establish their contextual importance with other released 
documents.

So what was of such concern to intelligence officials? It seems that 
this volume acknowledges the existence of four covert programs 
targeting a friendly nation -- Japan, including a small covert program 
begun in the late 1950s and continuing into the 1960s in which American 
intelligence operatives supported key pro-American Japanese politicians 
in an effort to split off the moderate wing of the leftist opposition. 
The documentation shows that the Johnson administration concluded that 
this program was neither appropriate nor worth the risk of exposure. As 
a result, in 1964, the program was phased out, but nevertheless, 
broader covert programs of propaganda and social action to encourage 
the Japanese to reject the influence of the left continued at moderate 
levels until 1968. It is this program, in particular, though well 
documented in various ambassadorial journals and memoirs, that 
primarily concerned intelligence agency screeners.

In an effort to satisfactorily meet the mandates of the FRUS 
legislation the editors have included a contextual explanation of the 
excised documents and their importance within the context of the era. 
Though readers of this particular FRUS volume are being denied access 
to the raw documentation by intelligence agencies and there is not the 
level of detail that one would characteristically expect to see in a 
volume in the FRUS series, the HO asserts it is not permitting history 
to be entirely rewritten because of deletions. Nevertheless, one source 
inside State views the volume as being "minimally acceptable" in terms 
of meeting FRUS legislative directives.

One does wonder, however, whether the JAPAN volume is merely an 
anomaly, or is this practice expected to be employed more frequently in 
future FRUS releases in order to sidestep CIA and other intelligence 
agency objections. For example, a FRUS volume on the CONGO has longtime 
been in the making and is still pending publication; according to 
inside sources, some of the documentation in it also has been difficult 
to clear with intelligence screeners. Sources inside the State 
Department HO concede that during the Bush administration "it is 
getting harder to get stuff released." But according to FRUS General 
Editor, Edward C. Keefer, the JAPAN volume "is unique and [does not] 
reflect a trend."

3. NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY TO OPEN EXHIBITION AT AIR AND
SPACE MUSEUM
As reported some months back in this newsletter, on 5 September 2006 
the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History 
(NMAH) will close its doors for some two years during which time major 
architectural renovations are scheduled to take place. But arrangements 
have been made to move some of the most beloved and most recently 
acquired (though not necessarily the most historically significant) 
artifacts to the nearby National Air and Space Museum and display them 
as part of a 5000 square foot "Treasures of American History" 
exhibition scheduled to open 17 November.

According to Brent Glass, NMAH director, the exhibition will have four 
themes: creativity and innovation, American biography, national 
challenges, and American identity. Iconic cultural objects, such as the 
Scarecrow costume seen in the classic movie the "Wizard of Oz," will be 
on display as will the NBC microphone from which President Franklin D. 
Roosevelt delivered his famous "Fireside chats" to millions of 
Americans listening by radio during the Great Depression and beyond.

According to Glass, the exhibition is designed to remind people that 
"the museum’s work in collecting continues" even though the public 
display area will be closed for some time. To keep this message before 
the visiting public, objects in the acquisitions display will be 
rotated every two months. The first items to be displayed will be 
artifacts from the recent Katrina disaster.

4. BITS AND BYTES
Item #1 -- Smithsonian Launches Online Photography Initiative: The 
Smithsonian's 18 museums, nine research centers, and the National Zoo 
collectively preserve some 13 million photographs which now, thanks to 
the Smithsonian Photography Initiative, will begin to be made 
accessible to researchers online. The images found in some seven 
hundred collections throughout the Smithsonian are organized by museum 
and discipline -- for instance, the National Museum of Natural History 
holds natural science images in its collections, the National Air and 
Space Museum houses images of flight in its archives, and the National 
Museum of African Art holds photographs of Africa in its collections. 
The Smithsonian Photography Initiative is devoted to the presentation 
and study of these photographic images, viewing photography as an art 
form, a record keeper, and a cross-disciplinary medium that encompasses 
science, history, popular culture, and more. Beyond offering more 
information about where to find photography collections throughout the 
Smithsonian, a new website aims to be an educational tool, serving 
anyone who wishes to study, explore, and enjoy photographs of many 
kinds. To view the website go to: http://www.spi.si.edu/ where you will 
be provided access to some 1,800 digital images, the work of 100 
photographers, who used 50 different processes.

Item #2 -- NEH Request for Proposals: The National Endowment for the 
Humanities (NEH), Division of Preservation and Access has issued a 
"Request for Proposals" for Cooperative Agreements for the National 
Digital Newspaper Program (A Partnership between NEH and the Library of 
Congress). The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is 
soliciting proposals from institutions to participate in the next phase 
of the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP). Ultimately, over a 
period of approximately 20 years, NDNP will create a national, digital 
resource of historically significant newspapers from all the states and 
U.S. territories published between 1836 and 1922. This searchable 
database will be permanently maintained at the Library of Congress (LC) 
and be freely accessible via the Internet. An accompanying national 
newspaper directory of bibliographic and holdings information on the 
website will direct users to newspaper titles available in various 
formats. LC will also digitize and contribute to the NDNP database a 
significant number of newspaper pages drawn from its own collections 
during the course of this partnership between NEH and the Library. The 
NEH expects to award two-year cooperative
agreements (of up to $400,000 each) depending on the availability of 
funds. The Guidelines for the Request for Proposals are located at: 
http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/ndnp.html .
LC's technical guidelines are found at: 
http://www.loc.gov/ndnp/pdf/NDNP_200709TechNotes.pdf . For information 
about the application process, contact Laura Gottesman in the Division 
of Preservation and Access at 202- 606-8570 or e-mail at 
[log in to unmask] All questions relating to the technical 
guidelines should be directed to LC staff at [log in to unmask]

Item #3 -- Endangered Battlefield Nominations Sought: The Civil War 
Preservation Trust (CWPT), the nation's largest nonprofit battlefield 
preservation organization, is accepting nominations for its annual Most 
Endangered Battlefields Report, identifying the most threatened Civil 
War sites in the United States and what can be done to save these 
precious links to our nation's past. The 2007 Most Endangered 
Battlefields Report will be released in February 2007 in Washington, 
D.C. Any Civil War battlefield is eligible to for nomination and 
consideration. The ten chosen sites will be selected based on 
geographic location, military significance and the immediacy of current 
threats. Individuals and groups are encouraged to fill out the 
nomination form available online at 
http://www.civilwar.org/news/topten2007/nominationform2007.pdf. 
Applications should include photographs of the site and a detailed 
description of recent threats. Nominations must be postmarked no later 
than 10 October 2006.

5. ARTICLES OF INTEREST
One posting this week: In "Museums Set Guidelines for Use of Sacred 
Objects" (Philanthropy News Digest and New York Times) 14 August 2006, 
the Association of Art Museum Directors has adopted a new set of 
guidelines designed to strike a balance between traditional practice of 
collecting indigenous objects as art with the competing interests of 
people who ancestors produced them. For the article go to: 
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/news/story.jhtml?id=153700011 .

************************************************************************ 

Who We Are...
The National Coalition for History (NCH) is a nonprofit educational 
organization that provides leadership in history related advocacy; it 
serves as the profession's national voice in the promotion of history 
and archives, and acts as a clearinghouse of news and information of 
interest to history related professionals. Membership in the history 
coalition is open to organizations that share our concern for history 
and archives. For information on how your history/archive organization 
can become a member, visit our website at http://www.h-net.org/~nch/ 
and click on the "Join the Coalition" web link.

Contribute and Support this publication...
Individuals are invited to help support the NCH by sending a donation 
directly to the NCH at 400 A Street S.E., Washington D.C. 20003, or, by 
making an online donation at 
http://www.conservenow.org/detail.asp?ORGID=2032&memflag=true. All 
contributions are
tax deductible.

Subscribe Today!
We invite individual readers to subscribe to this FREE weekly 
newsletter! You are also encouraged to redistribute the NCH Washington 
Updates to colleagues, friends, teachers, students and others who are 
interested in history and archives issues. Reports in this publications 
are copyrighted by the National Coalition for History and may be 
reprinted by history coalition member organizations with attribution. A 
complete backfile of these reports is maintained by H-Net on the NCH 
web page at www.h-net.org/~nch/.

To subscribe to the "NCH Washington Update," send an e-mail message to 
[log in to unmask] with the following text in the body of the message 
(and only this text) SUBSCRIBE H-NCH firstname lastname, institution. 
To unsubscribe, send an e-mail message to according to the following 
model SIGNOFF H-NCH.

You can accomplish the same tasks by tapping into the web interface at 
http: www.h-net.org/lists/subscribe.cgi and at the "network" prompt, 
scroll down and select H-NCH; enter your name and affiliation and 
"submit".
*************************************************************

________________________________________________________________________
Check out AOL.com today. Breaking news, video search, pictures, email 
and IM. All on demand. Always Free.

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org.
For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp.

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>