The British government secretly funded Reuters in the 1960s and 1970s at the behest of an anti-Soviet propaganda unit linked to British intelligence, reports Guy Faulconbridge of Reuters.
Faulconbridge reports, “The extent of influence – if any – that the government was able to exert over Reuters news in return for the money is unclear from the documents, which detail a 1969 secret British government financing deal for Reuters.
“However, the documents illustrate the level of involvement the government once had in Reuters’ affairs and the explicit agreement to conceal the financing.
“Earlier on Monday, the BBC published a story about the government funding. here
“’Many news organisations received some form of state subsidy after World War Two,’ David Crundwell, a spokesman for Reuters said.
“‘But the arrangement in 1969 was not in keeping with our Trust Principles and we would not do this today,’ said Crundwell, referring to the Reuters Trust Principles, designed to preserve the news agency’s integrity, independence and freedom from bias.”
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