“We can be dramatic, even theatrical; we can be persuasive; but the message we are telling must be true.”

— Edwin H. Land

On the lessons of the U-2 crisis, in an address in 1960, quoted in "Edwin H. Land : Science, And Public Policy" (9 November 1991) http://www.fas.org/rlg/land.htm by Richard L. Garwin
Context: It was not a question of the ineptitude that might be revealed by the truth, or the possible damage that the whole program of negotiation for peace may have suffered … and it was not a question of whether with foresight that particular crisis could have been avoided. The issue was this: Does an American, when he represents all Americans, have to tell the truth at any cost? The answer is yes, and the consequence of the answer is that our techniques for influencing the rest of the world cannot be rich and flexible like the techniques of our competitors. We can be dramatic, even theatrical; we can be persuasive; but the message we are telling must be true.

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Edwin H. Land 44

American scientist and inventor 1909–1991

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