Eight Faces of Propaganda

A video survey informed by propagandacritic.com

What is propaganda?

• Propaganda, simply put, is persistent persuasive messaging. It includes:– Ads ads ads.

• It resists:– The give and take of argument: i.e., critical thinking.

• It does this by manipulating: – Symbols– Emotions

Propaganda connotes malevolence, but it is a neutral tool.

Not necessarily good.

Not necessarily evil.

Types of Propaganda.Many types of propaganda, but we will focus on 8 key types identified by the Institute for Propaganda Analysis. The concepts in this PowerPoint come from propagandacritic.com. The example locations are indicated throughout.

Word Games– Name-calling– Glittering generalities– Euphemisms

False Connections– Transfer– Testimonial

Special Appeals– Plain folks– Bandwagon– Fear

Name calling.

• Definition: a device that “links a person, or idea to a negative symbol.”

• Effective how? The intended audience may reject the person or idea on the basis of the negative symbol.

• Examples: the words “hobo,” “queer,” “terrorist,” etc., have negative connotations added through the years.

Name calling antidotes: ask yourself…

• What does the name mean?• Does the idea in question have a legitimate

connection with the real meaning of the name?• Is an idea that serves my best interests being

dismissed through giving it a name I don't like?• Leaving the name out of consideration, what

are the merits of the idea itself?

Name calling example.

• “Boys Beware,” a 1950’s anti-gay propaganda film.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5VNe9NTOxA

Glittering generalities.

• Definition: a device that uses “virtue words” in association with the person or idea being promoted: e.g., “democracy,” “good,” “motherhood,” “fatherhood,” etc.

• Effective how? Audience supplies its own definitions for the “glittering” quality and applies it to the object of promotion, making it seem virtuous.

Glittering generalities antidote: ask yourself…

• What does the “virtue word” really mean?• Does the idea in question have a legitimate

connection with the real meaning of the word:• Is an idea that does not serve my best interests

being "sold" to me merely through its being given a name that I like?

• Leaving the “virtue word” out of consideration, what are the merits of the idea itself?

Glittering generalities example.

• “Army strong” commercial, 2009.• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq-ZVIZJaI

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Euphemisms.

• Definition: a device that attempts to make a potentially unpleasant reality more palatable.

• Effective how? Audience is shielded from factual perception of the person or idea for which euphemism is being employed.

• Example: “collateral damage” is the term the military uses for civilian casualties – civilians who are killed in a war zone.

Euphemism example.

• “High Fructose Corn Syrup” ad, 2008.• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEbRxTOy

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Transfer.

• Definition: a device by which the authority or prestige of something we respect is carried over to the person or idea being promoted. Symbols are used heavily to achieve this: the cross, American flag, etc.

• Effective how? The symbols deployed act as a sort of short-hand.

• Example: “doctors” in white lab coats to suggest that a cold medicine is effective.

Transfer antidotes: ask yourself…

• In the most simple and concrete terms, what is the proposal of the speaker?

• What is the meaning of the thing from which the propagandist is seeking to transfer authority, sanction, and prestige?

• Is there any legitimate connection between the proposal of the propagandist and the revered thing, person or institution?

• Leaving the propagandistic trick out of the picture, what are the merits of the proposal viewed alone?

Transfer example.

• “Volkswagen Commercial: the Force,” 2011.• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R55e-uHQ

na0• “Firework,” Katy Perry, 2011.• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGJuMBd

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Testimonial.

• Definition: a device that uses an outside source (like a celebrity) to confer legitimacy for a person, product or idea.

• Effective how: audience is manipulated by the appeal to an illegitimate authority.

• Example: Oprah Winfrey supported Barak Obama for his presidential campaign, but for what reason should we believe she knows what is best for the country?

Testimonial antidotes: ask yourself…

• Who or what is quoted in the testimonial?• Why should we regard this person (or

organization or publication) as having expert knowledge or trustworthy information on the subject in question?

• What does the idea amount to on its own merits, without the benefit of the Testimonial?

Testimonial example.

• “The Official Justin Bieber Proactiv Commercial,” 2010.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyET522rKMA

Plain folks.• Definition: a device that uses “ordinary people” to offer

testimony on behalf of a person, idea or thing.• Effective how? The device helps to convince audience that the

object of promotion is “of the people.” • Example: “America's recent presidents have all been

millionaires, but they have gone to great lengths to present themselves as ordinary citizens. Bill Clinton ate at McDonald's and confessed a fondness for trashy spy novels. George Bush Sr. hated broccoli, and loved to fish. Ronald Reagan was often photographed chopping wood, and Jimmy Carter presented himself as a humble peanut farmer from Georgia.”

Plain folks antidotes.

• What are the propagandist's ideas worth when divorced from his or her personality?

• What could he or she be trying to cover up with the plain-folks approach?

• What are the facts?

Plain folks example.

• “Yes on Proposition 8 Commercial,” 2009.• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4nqtDrJI

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Bandwagon.

• Definition: a device that suggests “everyone else is doing it, and so should you.”

• Effective how? People adore a crowd and do not want to be left out of groups.

• Example: “Big Bang Hite Beer,” 2009.

Bandwagon antidotes.

• What is this propagandist's program?• What is the evidence for and against the

program?• Regardless of the fact that others are

supporting this program, should I support it?• Does the program serve or undermine my

individual and collective interests?

Bandwagon example.

• “Prop 8, the Musical,” 2009. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_hyT7_B

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