I think weed fabric like that helps new trees to establish, including pines. It holds moisture like you stated, and keeps roots of other plants from competing with the trees. I use that fabric when I am planting apples, pears, chestnuts, etc....
However, the biggest two problems with white pines are (1) deer browsing them when they are small and (2) rubbing them when they get big enough to rub. When you stick them out in the open in a clean environment, it just makes those two problems worse. Small pines can be eaten to death by browsing, and when they reach chest height, they can be mauled to death by rubbing.
So what is the solution? You could cage every tree, but that would be very difficult and expensive in a large planting. Perhaps if it was just a few trees, that would be the best solution, along with using your weed fabric. There should come a time in several years when the trees are very large when you could then remove the cages - just don't do it too soon.
For large scale plantings, another option is to plant them in rows and let native vegetation grow up around them to help protect them from browsing and rubbing. You can do a little hand maintenance and even mowing the middle of the rows, but let the briers and brambles grow up around the trees to help deter deer. Does this work perfectly? No, it doesn't, but it beats trying to cage hundreds or thousands of trees. I used this method and now have many white pines that are 40 feet tall. I also lost many and replaced many along the way.
One more thing to keep in mind about white pines - they can't take a lot of moisture on the roots. Avoid planting them in places that don't drain well. Good luck.
