Wartime Information Security Program
Encyclopedia
The Wartime Information Security Program (abbreviated WISP) was a Cold War
-era group that would have been responsible for censorship
in the aftermath of a nuclear war. In such a situation, emergency powers would grant this group of eight officials authority over all United States
media and all other communications that entered or left the country.
The members of WISP and their support staff would take refuge and operate out of a specially-constructed bunker
in the basement of an academic building at McDaniel College
, Maryland. The several-thousand-square-foot bunker space was relinquished back to the college around 1990.
The group was originally created as the United State Office of Censorship under President Dwight David Eisenhower, but was later renamed to avoid negative connotation
s associated with the word "censorship".
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
-era group that would have been responsible for censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
in the aftermath of a nuclear war. In such a situation, emergency powers would grant this group of eight officials authority over all United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
media and all other communications that entered or left the country.
The members of WISP and their support staff would take refuge and operate out of a specially-constructed bunker
Bunker
A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
in the basement of an academic building at McDaniel College
McDaniel College
McDaniel College is a private four-year liberal arts college in Westminster, Maryland, located 30 miles northwest of Baltimore. The college also has a satellite campus located in Budapest, Hungary. Until July 2002, it was known as Western Maryland College...
, Maryland. The several-thousand-square-foot bunker space was relinquished back to the college around 1990.
The group was originally created as the United State Office of Censorship under President Dwight David Eisenhower, but was later renamed to avoid negative connotation
Connotation
A connotation is a commonly understood subjective cultural or emotional association that some word or phrase carries, in addition to the word's or phrase's explicit or literal meaning, which is its denotation....
s associated with the word "censorship".