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The Information Research Department (IRD) was the propaganda department of the British Foreign Office that operated from 1948–1977.[1] It was created to publish anti-communist propaganda, provide support and information to anti-communist politicians, academics, and writers, and to use weaponised disinformation and "fake news" to attack communists and anti-colonial movements.[2][3]
In 1978, it was revealed in the periodical The Guardian that Robert Conquest, a British scholar known for his anti-communist publications, worked for this department at least until 1956.[4]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ “Set up in 1948, the IRD “was one of the largest and best-funded sections of the Foreign Office until it was discreetly shut down in 1977 on the orders of [then foreign secretary] David Owen,””
Ian Sinclair (2019-01-09). "The original 'fake news'? The BBC and the Information Research Department" Morning Star. Retrieved 2022-02-10. - ↑ Sanchia Berg (2019-03-18). "'Fake news' sent out by government department" BBC. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
- ↑ Ian Sinclair (2019-01-09). "The original 'fake news'? The BBC and the Information Research Department" Morning Star. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
- ↑ David Leigh (1978-01-27). "Death of the department that never was" The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-02-10.