Under Military Control

One of the biggest radio networks in Europe belongs to the Pentagon. Operated mainly for 200,000 G.I.s and their dependents in Europe, the American Forces Network also reaches some 30 million other listeners. Not only does it provide Europe with Continent-wide English-language broadcasts, it has also won fame for its independent, even-handed news coverage. Despite its U.S. military sponsorship, Europeans have come to rely on it for more speedy delivery of the news than their own radio and television stations.

All the more noticeable, then, has been its deterioration over the past few months. Formerly run by civilian professional broadcasters loosely controlled by the Army, AFN has gradually been taken over directly by the military. Its success rests largely with the officer in command, who must have good judgment enough to strike a balance between too much freedom of speech and too little. "There is no censorship per se," says onetime AFN managing editor Maury Cagle, now with ABC radio news. "The policy of AFN is determined by how scared the information officer is." The present one, Navy Captain Walter Ellis, 50, seems to be running more scared than any of his predecessors.

Draconian Directives. As Public Affairs Chief of the U.S. European Command, Ellis conceives AFN broadcasts to be an obedient arm of U.S. policy. From his office in Stuttgart has come a steady stream of Draconian directives, all in the interests of what he calls "preventive maintenance." In other words, Ellis decides in advance how AFN will play a sensitive story. In reporting the recent 35,000-man U.S. troop cut in West Germany, for example, he instructed AFN not to use "cut" or "withdrawal"; "redeployment" was the proper word. No longer could AFN refer to the National Liberation Front; the enemy was to be called the Viet Cong only.

Ellis ordered the network not to "engage in independent political or diplomatic reporting." AFN Correspondent Tom Kuelbs, who had built a reputation for sound political reporting from Bonn, was suddenly off the air and wire reports were read instead. Kuelbs was told he could tape his material if he did not interject personal judgments. When he got an interview with German National Democratic Leader Adolf von Thadden, it was rejected because no wire-service reporter had been present. Since then, a few interviews taped by Kuelbs have been used, but with his voice edited out.

An AFN correspondent in West Berlin was ordered to get clearance for stories on demonstrations and political rallies, border incidents, escapes or attempted escapes, "activities at the Wall," access to Berlin, and operation of checkpoints. When the same correspondent filed a recent story, he was asked if it contained any independent reporting. Though he said yes, the story was introduced on the air as "compiled from the wires of A.P. and U.P.I."

As Ellis sees it, a military radio or TV station or publication should perform like a band. "The band," he explains, "can't make a political comment, can't say a wrong thing unless some s.o.b. has his horn out of tune."

Staffers, however, are growing tired of dancing to Ellis' tune and are talking of quitting, much to the consternation of European listeners as well as U.S. officials in Bonn, who have prized the network as one of the best advertisements for the U.S. in Europe.

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