'Disinformation' network blacklisting conservative news hides tax forms over 'harassment'

EXCLUSIVE — Two U.S. nonprofit groups tied to the Global Disinformation Index, a British entity blacklisting conservative media outlets, are refusing to disclose key details about their operations, citing an obscure federal exemption law on "harassment," according to a Washington Examiner investigation.

The private AN Foundation, also known as the Disinformation Index Foundation, and its affiliated public charity, Disinformation Index Inc., provided the Washington Examiner with heavily redacted copies of their 2021 IRS tax returns. A lawyer for the two entities is alleging that these redactions were made because the groups are the target of a coordinated "harassment campaign," a claim that multiple tax experts warn does not allow them to hide information on officers, board members, and, in the case of one group, omit the source of a donation.

"I don't think I've ever seen a 990 that excludes the names of officers and directors," said Alan Dye, a partner at Webster, Chamberlain, & Bean who has specialized in nonprofit law since 1975. “And I’ve looked at hundreds.”