Saunders, Frances Stonor. The Cultural Cold War: The CIA and the World of Arts and Letters. New York: The New Press, 2000. 509 pages. First published in 1999 by Granta (UK) as Who Paid the Piper?

If you ever had any doubt that "free" Western liberals were hiding as much dirty laundry as the Commies they criticized, then answer this: Why was a book of this caliber so long in coming? Why did it take an independent film producer from London (she is also arts editor at New Statesman) to write the best book on the CIA since The Invisible Government appeared in 1964 -- before she was even born? Are U.S. journalists and publishers simply asleep at the wheel of history, or is something more sinister going on? Is U.S. culture rot merely becoming painfully obvious, or are we getting dumbed down by design?

Saunders is a relentless investigator, and she writes with a gifted blend of reserve, irony, and passion. Her book is about how the CIA massively funded cultural activities during the Cold War, including books, journals, magazines, films, international conferences, and even Abstract Expressionism. Although many of the foundations and conduits used by the CIA were exposed in 1967, about 70 percent of the information in this book, by Saunders' estimate, has never before appeared in print. It took her six years of pursuing interviews, private collections of papers, and foundation records (the CIA ignored her FOIA request). Truly a brilliant achievement.
ISBN 1-56584-596-X

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