Betts says that the alternative to concealing research sponsors is to not publish the research at all—a prospect he considers unacceptable.

“A natural value of the academic profession is that the knowledge it generates should be as widely available as possible,” he says.

Betts also denies that the CIA had any influence on his research, and further says that he believes it is rare that the CIA will try to frame the research it has requested.

Preston B. Golson ’02, media spokesperson for the CIA Office of Public Affairs, adds that while the CIA is sometimes obligated to keep research classified, “it’s not the policy or practice of the Agency to censor academic work. ... It would be wrong, however, for anyone to equate classifying sensitive information with censorship.”

NAVIGATING FUNDING POLICY

The government funds the “overwhelming majority” of scientific research on campus, according to B.D. Colen, Harvard’s senior communications officer for University science. But, he adds, money from the CIA comprises a negligible part of that sum.

In fact, Colen says there is currently no CIA-sponsored research at Harvard, and the small number of CIA-funded projects over the past ten years have all been unclassified.

“We do not do classified work at Harvard,” Colen says, adding that donors may not censor research they have funded but are allowed to review work 30 days in advance of publication.

When organizations do reach out to professors to conduct research for them, the contracts must meet a strict set of guidelines provided by the Harvard Office for Sponsored Programs, which facilitates outside funding of University research.

According to “Principles and Polices that Govern Your Research, Instruction, and Other Professional Activities,” a rule book published by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, “The source of sponsorship and the purpose of the research must be of such a nature that they can be publicly disclosed.”

Exceptions to this rule are allowed, but must be approved by the Dean of the Faculty, the Committee on Research Policy, or the Committee on Professional Conduct.

IS IT WORTH IT?

Administrators at the University say they understand that while it is sometimes necessary, accepting money from outside sources requires discretion.

Tad J. Oelstrom, director of the National Security Program at the Harvard Kennedy School, says that the integrity of research done with any source of outside funding—whether from the government or not—is at risk.

“Government grants are good because they’re very well spelled out and provide a reliable source of money for the duration of the project. But they come with many legal and regulatory restrictions,” adds Kevin Ryan, executive director for research at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.