The United States Information Agency (USIA), which existed from 1953 to 1999, was the propaganda arm of the US during the Cold War. It held a staff of approximately 5000 employees to promote US foreign policy abroad. In 1999, it was foled into the Education Bureau at the US State Department. The Smith-Mundt Act was passed in order to prevent America's own citizens from being propagandized by this agency. The USIA also operated the Voice of America and the Fullbright Scholarship program. * See former USIA employee Dr. Nancy Snow's book Propaganda Inc. for more.