COINTELPRO
EstablishedConfirmed as fact in the official record
The claim
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation was said to run a secret programme that watched domestic groups and worked to break them from inside.
Where it started
In 1971 documents taken from a bureau field office in Media, Pennsylvania were passed to the press, and the programme's name became public for the first time.
Where it stands
The Senate select committee on intelligence activities confirmed in its 1976 final report that the programme ran from 1956 to 1971 and that its methods were unlawful. The report describes surveillance, anonymous letters, press placements and efforts to set members of a group against each other.
Primary sources
- 미국 국립기록관리청, 의회 조사 기록archives.govOfficial source
- 미국 정부간행물국 govinfo, 상원 특별조사위원회 보고서govinfo.govOfficial source
checked 2026-09-07
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