“Will gladden the hearts of anyone interested in communication history during critical periods in the 20th century. . . . A balanced, well-written account of how governments can handle the difficult task of preserving press freedom in wartime without jeopardizing national security.” — Political Communication
“A smart and necessary book. . . . Sweeney has managed an impressive balancing act, pouring exhaustively researched detail into a clean and engaging narrative; the result is one of those books you wish you could make people read.” — Washington Post Book World
“An even-paced, exhaustively researched . . . text on a paradoxical period for American media.” — Publishers Weekly
“This timely and important book about journalism, the media, and government control of information during wartime is highly recommended for academic and large public libraries.” — Library Journal
“Adds deeper understanding about the way the world’s leading democracy dealt with press censorship when it was brought into the war by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. . . . A solid book that should be read by all students of press freedom and media history.” — Journalism History
“A well-researched study of the U.S. office of censorship. . . . A well-written history of a rarely examined government agency that could have, but never did threaten, U.S. press freedom.” — International Journal of History
“The most comprehensive history of the Office of Censorship and its director, Byron Price, to date. . . . Sweeney tells this story conscientiously and thoroughly.” — Journal of American History
“Sweeney makes a useful contribution to the growing literature of the U.S. government’s modern relationship with mass media.” — American Historical Review
“This is a first-rate book by an outstanding historian who has poured mountains of research into his topic. It will be of interest not only to scholars but also to anyone teaching courses on the press or on the America of World War II.” — Journal of Military History
“American censorship policy during WWII has been extraordinarily neglected. . . . Sweeney’s solid book . . . is therefore both a welcome and important addition to the literature.” — CHOICE