Papers of an NBC vice-president for public relations which document overall responsibility in this area. The papers consist of correspondence, memos, pamphlets, reports, speeches, clippings, scripts, and related material. In addition to material relating to this position, there is also a small amount of documentation regarding Brooks' earlier tenure as vice-president for new and special events. The bulk of the documentation relating to that period in his career, however, may be found with the news and special events files. The public relations papers are divided into three groups: SUBJECT FILES, DEPARTMENTAL FILES, and PROGRAM FILES.
Responsibility for public relations is best evidenced by the many letters and speeches which Brooks prepared or reviewed for use by NBC executives and by correspondence and internal memoranda regarding public reaction to programs and other NBC activities. The most significant files are those on race relations, especially those concerning employment policies; on the broadcasting of the Kefauver Crime Commission hearings; on the news and special events, press and publicity, and public affairs departments; and on several programs. Files for Kukla, Fran, and Ollie, Victory at Sea, We, the People, and The Quick and the Dead are particularly interesting, as are those on American Forum of the Air and The Kate Smith Show which contain scripts. Other noteworthy material concerns NBC's 25th anniversary, the Voice of America (operated by NBC personnel), television broadcasting, and the mobile unit.
Correspondence of significance from Tallulah Bankhead and Herbert Bayard Swope is to be found in their respective folders. NBC executives of prominence in the files are Henry Cassidy, Charles Denny, Sidney H. Eiges, William S. Hedges, Stockton Helffrich, John K. Herbert, Joseph V. McConnell, Joseph Meyers, John F. Royal, David Sarnoff, Edward Stanley, Davidson Taylor, Niles Trammell, and Fred Wile.
