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Why did the British government distribute copies of The Jacobite’s Journal?

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Henry Fielding, frontispiece to Fielding's Works (1st ed., 1762), engraving by James Basire after a drawing by William Hogarth — Henry Fielding Henry Fielding, frontispiece to Fielding's *Works* (1st ed., 1762), engraving by James Basire after a drawing by William Hogarth

The British government distributed copies of The Jacobite’s Journal because they recognized its significant propaganda value in supporting the government's cause.1

Edited by the English author Henry Fielding, the weekly paper utilized an ironical approach to address current affairs following the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. To leverage this influence, the government purchased 2,000 copies of every issue for free distribution throughout the kingdom's inns and alehouses.1