The Paper Wall : Newspapers and Propaganda in Ireland 1919-1921

'Kevin Barry Must Die' 'Armed Forces Of The Crown Kill Players And Spectators In Croke Park' 'Auxiliaries Mutilated After Cork Ambush' What stories lie behind these headlines from the Irish War of Independence?

Who wrote them? What attempts were made to manipulate them? Using contemporary newspapers, archival sources and newly opened files The Paper Wall attempts to answer these questions and bring a fresh perspective to the period from the first Dail of 1919 to the Truce in 1921.

Both the British Government with its 'Public Information Branch' and Dail Aeireann with its 'Department of Propaganda' sought to influence and to control the press during this time.

Sinn Fein's main aim was to crack the 'paper wall' erected around Ireland by British propaganda, censorship of reporting and limited media access.

Each day over 500,000 newspapers were sold to an Irish public eager to keep abreast of the latest dramatic developments.

As well as examining the competing propaganda departments, this book analyses the role of five newspapers - the Irish Independent, The Irish Times, Freeman's Journal, Cork Examiner and The Times of London. They and their reporters were under constant pressure and violent intimidation was common.

Inevitably, they became not just chroniclers of events but participants.

The Paper Wall provides a clear account of how the newspapers worked and reported amidst the storm of suppression, censorship, intimidation, propaganda and violence.