The Ministry of Popular Culture ( it, Ministero della Cultura Popolare, commonly abbreviated to MinCulPop) was a

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

of the Italian government from 1937 to 1944.

History

It was established by the Fascist government in 1922 as the ''Press Office of the Presidency of the Council'', before being renamed to ''Press Office of the Head of Government'' in 1925. In 1934 it became the ''Secretariat for Press and Propaganda''. It became a ministry in 1935 and was given its definitive designation in 1937. During its existence, it controlled most of the literary and radio channels in Italy. It was the Italian analogue of the German Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. The Ministry financed various Fascist publications, including ''

La Difesa della Razza ''La Difesa della Razza'' (Italian: ''In Defence of Race'') was a Fascist biweekly magazine which was published in Rome between 1938 and 1943 during the Fascist rule in Italy. Its subtitle was ''Scienza, Documentazione, Polemica''. It played a s ...

''. It famously outlawed the importation and translation of all American comic books, with the lone exception of

Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...

, in 1938."Eccetto topolino" di F. Gadducci, L. Gori, S. Lama - Il Foglio.it › Una fogliata di libri
The Ministry was officially suppressed by the Kingdom of Italy on 3 July 1944, having remained vacant ever since the overthrow of

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

in the

25 Luglio The fall of the Fascist regime in Italy, also known in Italy as 25 Luglio ( it, Venticinque Luglio, ; "25 July"), came as a result of parallel plots led respectively by Count Dino Grandi and King Victor Emmanuel III during the spring and sum ...

coup a year earlier. During the

Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...

, Mussolini revived the Ministry of Popular Culture and appointed Ferdinando Mezzasoma as its head.

History

List of Ministers

Kingdom of Italy

Italian Social Republic

See also

References

Further reading