Radio Committee of Defense Group To Give Lincoln Play Over WMEX

Putting into practice the information it gleaned from its radio survey, the Radio Committee of American Defense, Harvard Group will present, in celebration of Lincoln's birthday, a radio play on his life over WMEX tonight from 7:30 to 8 o'clock. Music for the program will be furnished by twelve members of the Glee Club.

In March, the Committee is going to give a play stressing the common soldier's part at Valley Forge; and they also expect to put four radio series, which are now being completed, on the air for 13-week test periods in the near future, stated Fred Ossauna, Jr. '41, executive secretary of the Committee.

Experts to Participate

"Expert Please," in which a group of experts take a subject like shipbuilding and then discuss different phases of it, is one of the series planned. The studio audience and the listening audience, by mail, may question the experts on the subject.

Two Nieman Fellows. Jim Colvin of the Chicago "Daily News" and Stanford Cooper of the Pittsburg "Press," in collaboration with the Radio Committee's head, Carl J. Friedrich, Professor of Government and Harvard's nationally known expert on public opinion and propaganda, have prepared a series on propaganda entitled "Is That So?"

A third series being prepared deals with refugee experiences, and the fourth is on Japan.

Listening Panel Formed

To determine the number of people in the Harvard Community who listened to programs concerning national defense problems, the Committee sent out a questionnaire as one of the first moves after its formation. Those answering were asked to collaborate in forming a Radio Listening Panel, which is now composed of over 2800 people ranging from professors to laymen.

The Committee sends out a weekly bulletin of certain programs and a questionnaire on them. "Results of the questionnaires are used to aid the committee in producing good radio programs, to give others information on defense programs, and in general to determine how to make defense programs more vital and interesting to the public," said Ossanns.

Professor Friedrich and his staff are devoting a considerable amount of their time to this work and they feel they will be amply rewarded if they can do their part to "increase the intelligence and responsibility of public opinion and, through this the efficiency of democracy."