How the Gov uses disinformation and propaganda

Good interview and deep dive into all the money spent and different agencies involved. Ignore the comments about trump, it doesn't take away from the excellent info provided. So far anyway. I'm only an hr in.

They make it sound 'educational and informative', but the reality is it's propaganda on the world.

The U.S. Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 (Public Law 80-402), popularly called the Smith–Mundt Act
The original version of the Act was amended by the Smith–Mundt Modernization Act of 2012 [i.e., Obama] which allowed for materials produced by the State Department and the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) to be made available within the United States.[2][3]


Congress, in recommending passage of the bill, declared that "truth can be a powerful weapon". Congress further declared six principles were required for the legislation to be successful in action: tell the truth; explain the motives of the United States; bolster morale and extend hope; give a true and convincing picture of American life, methods, and ideals; combat misrepresentation and distortion; and aggressively interpret and support American foreign policy. As a Cold War measure, it was intended to compete with propaganda from the Soviet Union and Communist organizations primarily in Europe. The principal purpose of the legislation was to engage in a global struggle for minds and wills, a phrase used by Presidents Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Section 501(a) of the Act (care of the Voice of America website) provides that

information produced by VOA for audiences outside the United States shall not be disseminated within the United States … but, on request, shall be available in the English language at VOA, at all reasonable times following its release as information abroad, for examination only by representatives of United States press associations, newspapers, magazines, radio systems, and stations, and by research students and scholars, and, on request, shall be made available for examination only to Members of Congress.

Click to expand...

"This means that VOA is forbidden to broadcast within the United States." However, any American with a shortwave receiver or an Internet connection can listen to VOA. This is incidental, however. VOA cannot direct or intend its programs to be "for" Americans.