Moscow Campaigns against War Propaganda,
Abstract
On September 23, l982, the USSR Supreme Soviet suddenly ratified the September 23, l936, League of Nations International Convention Concerning the Use of Broadcasting in the Cause of Peace. The convention essentially prohibits the transmission of war propaganda or any other information prejudicial to good international understanding. The unexpected Soviet move, coming in the midst of a peace campaign against alleged US Cold War policies, may presage a new Soviet diplomatic offensive against Western radio broadcasting to the USSR and Eastern Europe. Their goal would be to target Western radio stations--Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in particular--as well as other subversive Western information media as violating the convention's basic principles. Soviet claims that ratification was timely seem consistent with Moscow's recent propaganda attacks on RFE/RL's alleged role in the Polish crisis and bitter denunciations of an alleged US ideological offensive against the USSR. Such claims implicitly provide the USSR with justification for the continued jamming of Western broadcasts. Moscow presumably calculates that because of the convention's moral and symbolic significance, Soviet exploitation of the war propaganda theme will find receptivity among developing nations, which share the USSR's contention that the international flow of information is Western dominated and should be regulated to protect national sovereignty. Having become a full party to the agreement, the Soviets nevertheless could find themselves vulnerable to charges of violating certain of the convention's articles, specifically those calling for the verification and correction of incorrect or inaccurate broadcasts.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 1982
- Accession Number
- ADA145448
Entities
People
- D. Hertzberg