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The Matt Cecil Papers comprise photocopied Federal Bureau of Investigation files on hundreds of twentieth-century journalists, editors, broadcasters, publishers, news organizations, and related government officials, obtained by Matthew Cecil through the Freedom of Information and Privacy Acts. The materials document FBI monitoring, contacts, and public relations activities during the J. Edgar Hoover era and after. Inclusive dates span 1918 to 2000, with the bulk from the 1930s to the 1970s.

The collection consists of FBI case files, correspondence, memoranda, routing slips, teletype messages, surveillance reports, news releases, interviews, essays, investigations, clippings, and magazine tearsheets. Files are organized by creator or entity and include broadcasters, columnists, reporters, writers, cartoonists, editors, publishers, federal agents and government officials, news agencies, periodicals, and film, radio, and television programs. Examples include files on figures such as Steve Allen, Eric Sevareid, Dorothy Kilgallen, I. F. Stone, Westbrook Pegler, and Ed Sullivan; editors including James Wechsler and Freda Kirchwey; publishers including William Randolph Hearst and Katharine Graham; agencies and outlets such as Associated Press, United Press International, the Chicago Tribune, the New Republic, and the Nation; and entertainment properties and programs including the FBI radio series and television series and Hearst Metrotone News. Topic files include materials on public relations practitioners, academic and political figures, and organizations such as the Society of Former Special Agents. Documentation includes standard FBI redaction sheets inserted where pages were withheld under Title 5 U.S.C. 552 and 552a. Some photocopies are light or blurred as noted by FBI reproduction statements. A subset of folders is marked water damaged; papers are dry but warped and may be brittle.

The papers provide primary evidence of FBI interactions with and assessments of the news media, publishing, and entertainment industries, with emphasis on the Bureau’s public relations strategies during the Hoover era. The records support research on government and the press, media history, and the professional activities of individual journalists and editors. Topical coverage includes Communism, McCarthyism, organized crime, kidnapping, threats, the Kennedy assassination, and smear campaigns, offering source material for studies of twentieth-century American political culture, information control, and media influence.

This collection consists of publications and printed material produced by the South Dakota State University (SDSU) Marketing and Communications unit, formerly known as University Relations. The records span several decades and reflect the unit's central role in internal and external university communications. The materials document institutional messaging, campus updates, and promotional efforts intended for various audiences, particularly faculty, staff, prospective students, alumni, and the public.

Major components of the collection include high-frequency campus communication pieces such as Today at State, Faculty Bulletin, University Bulletin, SDSU Update, E-Connect, and SDSU Newsline. These serials provided regular updates on lectures, events, job postings, policy changes, and campus news. They underwent several title and format transitions reflecting changes in communication technology and strategy:

• 1944–1970: Faculty Bulletin
• 1971–1977: University Bulletin
• 1978–2004: SDSU Update
• 2000–2004: E-Update (briefly printed, then online)
• 2004–2007: E-Connect (online only)
• 2007–present: SDSU Newsline (emailed and web-published)

Today at State, a daily bulletin printed during the academic year from 1971 to 2007, was directed toward campus faculty and staff, serving as a primary channel for time-sensitive updates.

Additional materials in the collection include Calling Home from South Dakota State University, Impact State, Arts at State newsletters, research and promotional reports (e.g., SDSU Marketing Strategy, Graphic Identity Manual), event guides, market research, and publications related to specific colleges and campus initiatives. Issues of College Home from SDSU Magazine, special event planning documents, donor recognition materials, and visual promotional content such as postcards, banners, and merchandise catalogs further illustrate the university’s evolving branding and outreach strategies.

This collection also includes content documenting significant institutional moments such as the SDSU Centennial, branding initiatives, and building dedications. It offers insight into how SDSU has communicated its mission, academic offerings, and institutional priorities to various stakeholders over time.

This collection is a resource for their comprehensive documentation of South Dakota State University’s official communications, branding evolution, internal messaging, and public outreach. They reflect administrative priorities, institutional culture, and university-community relationships. These materials are particularly useful for researchers studying higher education marketing, land-grant university identity, and institutional communication trends over the 20th and 21st centuries.