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CIA Manipulated Culture During Cold War
13 Oct
Summary
- CIA secretly funded cultural projects during the Cold War.
- 'Animal Farm' animated film altered ending to be anti-communist.
- Author Frances Stonor Saunders revealed these activities in her book.
In 1999, author Frances Stonor Saunders chronicled the CIA's secret backing of cultural projects aimed at manipulating public opinion against Communism in Western Europe. These covert activities occurred after World War II.
Among these revelations, the CIA produced an animated adaptation of George Orwell's 1945 satirical fable, 'Animal Farm.' The 1954 film significantly altered Orwell's original ending to be more overtly anti-communist.
Saunders' book, 'Who Paid the Piper?: The C.I.A. and the Cultural Cold War,' details how the spy agency's operatives acquired film rights shortly after Orwell's death in 1950. The altered film depicted a counterrevolution by oppressed animals against the ruling pigs.
Frances Stonor Saunders passed away on August 31, 2026, at the age of 60, after a battle with glioblastoma. Her work exposed a hidden layer of Cold War influence on culture.
