61.21a

“The Spoken Word: Good Talkers.” Article by Michael Swain. Listener, 23 November. Comment on Mailer’s conversation with British writer Colin MacInnes about religion and existentialism, among other things, on a BBC program. Mailer said that in the war between God and the Devil, at times it would be preferable for the Devil to win a battle rather than there be no decision. He also said, “Churches are not religious. They are now for social religions . . . A mass media for propaganda.” The transcript for the program, a revealing document, is 23 pages long.