Secrets and transparency: The Office of Strategic Information and the first freedom of information law

• Published in: Presidential studies quarterly Vol. 54; no. 4; pp. 458 - 480
• Main Author: Baron, Kevin M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington Center for the Study of the Presidency 01-12-2024
• Subjects: Archival research; Authority; Case studies; Cold War; Congress; Freedom of information; Freedoms; Government; Government information; Housing authorities; Law; National security; Office of Strategic Information; oversight; presidency; Presidents; Secrets; Separation of powers; Statutes; Testimony; Transparency; Unilateralism
• ISSN: 0360-4918; 1741-5705
• DOI: 10.1111/psq.12892

Freedom of information (FOI) rose to saliency in the early Cold War period as the presidency grappled with controlling what government information was made public or available to Congress. A lack of formal structures and authority provided presidents with the opportunity to unilaterally shape new policies and structures. One such structure was the Office of Strategic Information (OSI), created by a National Security Council directive and housed in the Commerce Department. Congress utilized its oversight power by creating the Moss Subcommittee on Government Information to investigate these new policies and structures. Over a 4‐year period in the mid‐1950s, an interbranch power struggle emerged over what authority existed within the executive branch to deny information and testimony to Congress. OSI is one example in a larger context of FOI that left Congress seeking to clarify executive authority within existing statutes and among new structures, leading to the passage of the first freedom of information law in 1958. Original archival research is used to provide insight into the complexities of governing in a separation of powers system. This early case study informs contemporary politics on congressional access to executive information.