Only logged in members can reply and interact with the post.
Join SimilarWorlds for FREE »

Change your Media Diet: Save yourself, stop watching propaganda [I Get Tired Of All The Political Propaganda]

The most arrogant thing a person can do, is think that these tactics don't work on you. If they didn't work on you, then why would people spend so much money and effort in spreading propaganda?

So what is Propaganda? According to the dictionairy:

[quote][b]Definition of propaganda[/b]

1 capitalized : a congregation of the Roman curia having jurisdiction over missionary territories and related institutions

2: the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person

3: ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause or to damage an opposing cause

[b]Source:[/b] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/propaganda[/quote]


What concerns this post is number 2 and 3 of the defenitions. I'm not intrested in the Roman Curia at this moment. On Wikipedia, you find the following:

[quote]Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed towards influencing the attitude of the community toward some cause or position by presenting only one side of an argument. Propaganda is usually repeated and dispersed over a wide variety of media in order to create the chosen result in audience attitudes.

As opposed to impartially providing information, propaganda, in its most basic sense, presents information primarily to influence an audience. Propaganda often presents facts selectively (thus possibly lying by omission) to encourage a particular synthesis, or uses loaded messages to produce an emotional rather than rational response to the information presented. The desired result is a change of the attitude toward the subject in the target audience to further a political, religious or commercial agenda. Propaganda can be used as a form of ideological or commercial warfare.

[b]Source:[/b] http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/propaganda.pdf[/quote]

which was influenced from Edward Bernays book from 1928. The book you can read for free in the pdf, it's been fully uploaded and untouched. You find the wikipedia articles that are largerly based on it added in the back.

So Propaganda is a way that political actors [i](politicians and political groups)[/i] sways the popular opinion so they can gain political power. Or as Bernays says:

[quote][b][u]Chapter 1[/u][/b]

THE conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country.

We are governed, our minds are molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of. This is a logical result of the way in which our democratic society is organized. Vast numbers of human beings must cooperate in this manner if they are to live together as a smoothly functioning society

[b][u]Chapter 2[/u][/b]

To-day, however, a reaction has set in. The minority has discovered a powerful help in influencing majorities. It has been found possible so to mold the mind of the masses that they will throw their newly gained strength in the desired direction. In the present structure of society, this practice is inevitable. Whatever of social importance is done to-day, whether in politics, finance, manufacture, agriculture, charity, education, or other fields, must be done with the help of propaganda. Propaganda is the executive arm of the invisible government.

Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man to control his environment. Once he could read and write he would have a mind fit to rule. So ran the democratic doctrine. But instead of a mind, universal literacy has given him rubber stamps, rubber stamps inked with advertising slogans, with editorials, with published scientific data, with the trivialities of the tabloids and the platitudes of history, but quite innocent of original thought. Each man's rubber stamps are the duplicates of millions of others, so that when those millions are exposed to the same stimuli, all receive identical imprints. It may seem an exaggeration to say that the American public gets most of its ideas in this wholesale fashion. The mechanism by which ideas are disseminated on a large scale is propaganda, in the broad sense of an organized effort to spread a particular belief or doctrine

[b]Source:[/b] Taken from [b]Propaganda[/b], Edward Bernays (1928)
http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/propaganda.pdf[/quote]


Edward Bernays isn't a conspiratorial figure, even though his writing might suggest otherwise. He's just aware that the data people consume can be manipulated. And that people with influence and money are more likely to manipulate it because they have the resources to do so. Propaganda has been used for a long while, it's nothing new. But because of our high connectivity through social media [i](or the internet in general)[/i], it spread a lot quicker. And it has been seriously effective in mass movements.

Propaganda swayed young people in Europe to fight for the higher ideals of the muslim khalifat, for instance. Without propaganda, a lot of these kids would just have stayed at home. But instead, they got hooked on a message that played in on their emotions and biasses and they seeked their "destiny" elsewhere. Propaganda played a huge roll in Rwanda, where radiostation Mille Collines constantly pushed hatefull messages towards tutsis over the radiowaves. Propaganda prayed on primal fears of being overrun by "the cockoaroaches" and called people to eliminatie the thread. It worked in regimes that embraced Stalinism and it worked for Hitler. But our countries aren't strangers to propaganda. It's alive and kicking, and it never went away. Left, right, center... every political group makes use of propaganda. As Bernays says:

[quote]I am aware that the word "propaganda" carries to many minds an unpleasant connotation. Yet whether, in any instance, propaganda is good or bad depends upon the merit of the cause urged, and the correctness of the information published.

In itself, the word "propaganda" has certain technical meanings which, like most things in this world, are "neither good nor bad but custom makes them so."[/quote]



So... How to recognise propaganda? Here are some propaganda tactics I found on the website from the university of Vermont.

[quote]1. [b]NAME CALLING or STEREOTYPING[/b]: Giving a person or an idea a bad label by using an easy to remember pejorative name. This is used to make us reject and condemn a person or idea without examining what the label really means. Examples: "Republican", "Tree-Hugger", "Nazi", "Environmentalist", "Special-Interest Group".

2. [b] WORDS or GLITTERING GENERALITY[/b]: These words are used to dupe us into accepting and approving of things without examining the evidence carefully. Examples: "Natural", "Democratic", "Organic", "Scientific", "Ecological", "Sustainable".

3. [b]DEIFICATION[/b]: This is when an idea is made to appear holy, sacred, or very special and therefore above all law. Any alternative or opposite points of view are thereby given the appearance of treason or blasphemy. Examples: "God-given right to...", "Mother Earth", "Gia".

4. [b]TRANSFER[/b]: Transfer is when a symbol that carries respect, authority, sanction, and prestige is used along with and idea or argument to make it look more acceptable. Examples: American Flag, University Seal, Medical Association Symbol (or something that looks like it). This method is also called GUILT- or VIRTUE-BY-ASSOCIATION.

5. [b]TESTIMONIAL[/b]: When some respected celebrity (or alternatively someone generally hated) claims that an idea or product is good (or bad). This technique is used to convince us without examining the facts more carefully.

6. [b]PLAIN FOLKS[/b]: This is a way that a speaker convinces an audience that an idea is good because they are the same ideas of the vast majority of people like yourself. Examples: "This is the will of the People", "Most Americans...". Another example would be when the speaker tells a story about a family or people that are "just like you" to reinforce the speaker's point of view.

7. [b]BAND WAGON[/b]: This common propaganda method is when the speaker tries to convince us to accept their point of view or else we will miss out on something really good. The Band-Wagon technique is often used in advertising. Examples: "This is the wave of the future", "Be the first on your block", "Act Now!". You might ask yourself "What if I was the only one on my block because no one else was interested (duped)?".

8. [b]ARTIFICIAL DICHOTOMY[/b]: This is when someone tries to claim there are only two sides to an issue and that both sides must have equal presentation in order to be evaluated. This technique is used to dupe us into believing there is only one way to look at an issue, when in fact there may be many alternative viewpoints or "sides". Like most propaganda techniques it simplifies reality and therefore distorts it, often to the advantage of the speaker. A classic example is the "intelligent design" versus "evolution" controversy.

9. [b]HOT POTATO[/b]: This is an inflammatory (often untrue) statement or question used to throw an opponent off guard, or to embarrass them. Examples "Have you stopped beating your spouse", "When will you pay the taxes you owe?" The fact that it may be utterly untrue is irrelevant, because it still brings controversy to the opponent.

10. [b]STALLING or IGNORING THE QUESTION[/b]: This technique is used to play for more time or to avoid answering a pointed question. Examples: "More research is needed...", "A fact-finding committee is working on this issue..." "I am calling for an investigation on this failure.." When asked about a tax increase possibility a senator replies: "I have always met the obligations I have to those I represent."

11. [b]LEAST-OF-EVILS[/b]: is used to justify an otherwise unpleasant or unpopular point of view. Example: '"War is hell but appeasement leads to worse disasters".

12. [b]SCAPEGOAT[/b]: This often use with Guilt-by-association to deflect scrutiny away from the issues. It transfers blame to one person or group of people without investigating the complexities of the issue. Examples: "George W. Bush got us into Iraq", "President Reagan caused the national debt".

13. [b]CAUSE AND EFFECT MISMATCH[/b]: This technique confuses the audience about what is really cause and effect. In fact the causes of most phenomena are complex, and it is misleading to say just one of the following: "Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria", "Tuberculosis is caused by un-regulated capitalism that creates poor working conditions", "Tuberculosis is caused by a lack of effective antibiotics".

14.[b]DISTORTION OF DATA or OUT OF CONTEXT or CARD STACKING or CHERRY PICKING[/b]: This technique is used to convince the audience by using selected information and not presenting the complete story. Examples: "A study was done that showed eating peanut butter causes liver cancer" (the fact that later the study was later shown to be flawed or funded by the peanut butter haters and therefore suspect, is not revealed). A variation would be "Raising the speed limit to 65 mph resulted in many fewer traffic fatalities". Such statements need to be checked with how many people were driving before and after the change in speed limit. Fewer people may be driving after the speed limit change, even though the fatality rates (deaths per 100,000) may be higher, leading to the overall result of fewer fatalities.

15. [b]WEAK INFERENCE (or False Cause)[/b]: Weak inference is when a judgment is made with insufficient evidence, or that the conclusion does not necessarily follow from the evidence given. For example: Ducks and geese migrate south for the winter, therefore all waterfowl migrate south for the winter. Or, most rich folks vote republican, therefore most people who vote republican are rich.

16. [b]FAULTY ANALOGY[/b]: This is when a comparison is carried to far. Example: "The economy is following the same path as right before the great depression, therefore we will experience a stock market crash soon!" SLIPPERY SLOPE would be an example of faulty analogy. Slippery slope makes the argument that a shift in one direction will continue to lead to extremes (ex. smoking pot will lead to heroine addiction). It is not necessarily so.

17. [b]MISUSE OF STATISTICS[/b]: Some examples: Average results are reported, but not the amount of variation around the averages. A percent or fraction is presented, but not the sample size as in "9 out of 10 dentists recommend...". Absolute and proportional quantities are mixed as in "3,400 more robberies occurred in our town last year, whereas other cities hand an increase of less than one percent". Graphs are used that, by chopping off part of the scale or using unusual units or no scale, distort the appearance of the result. Results are reported with misleading precision. For example, representing 13 out of 19 students as 68.42105 percent.

18. [b]FEAR[/b]: "Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger."
-- Herman Goering at the Nuremberg trials (http://www.snopes.com/quotes/goering.htm)

19. [b]ad hominem ATTACK (also called Deflection)[/b]: You attack the messenger, instead of the argument or evidence that is presented.

20. [b]tu quoque ATTACK[/b]: Pronounced too-kwo-kwee. This technique is when you respond to your opponent by accusing them of committing a logical fallacy or propaganda technique instead of addressing the claim of your opponent's argument and evidence. Ex. "You too are using fear as a propaganda technique"

21. [b]Preemptive Framing[/b]: "Frame an issue before other people get a chance to" (George Lakoff - On the Media Jan 2017) Ex. "The only reason the hacking of the poorly defended DNC (Democratic National Committee) is discussed, is that the loss by the Dems was so big that they were totally embarassed" -Donald Trump. When in fact the Dems did not lose big, nor was is their fault that they got hacked.

22. [b]Diversion[/b]: When a major issue comes up that is embarrassing or threatening, so a diversion is created so attention is directed away from the issue.

[b]Source:[/b] https://www.uvm.edu/~jleonard/AGRI183/propoaganda.html[/quote]



If your media diet contains a lot of these techniques... then I advice you to change it. Because you are watching propaganda. It's not informing you, it's swaying your opinion by selling you a narrative. If you watch sources that always make you angry about toppics you were already not feeling good about and make you feel good about yourself and never ever tell you you are wrong, well... then you are watching propaganda aimed to hook you up too the team. If you have source that makes you think you understand everything and never pushes you to question your believes? Then stop watching it, cause you aren't learning annything, you are just indoctrinating yourself.

I also advice people to watch "The Nutpicking Fallacy" by rationality rules, which is probably one of the most common logical fallacies that I've been witnessing tribal groups (or the team).


[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVHvdjUZAzI]


[b]Annyway, change your media diet before it changes you beyond repair.[/b]

Or as the text on one of our holocaust monuments over here says:

[i][b]Watch your thoughts, they become words;
Watch your words, they become actions;
Watch your actions, they become habits;
Watch your habits, they become character;
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.[/b][/i]
you are waaay above the normal thinking/reading skills of most of us. Hope I understnad most of it though.

Reality itself esp written reality and memes is a multi-edged sword.

and Freud and Bernays were probably considered progressive for their time. Theirs.

Mutiny rumbles on SW when we can't move progressively on here though. Most July 4 memes are about hotdogs lol!
Kwek00 · 41-45, M
@Elevatorpitches Not sure, I don't consider myself that smart.

It's strange you comment on this now, because I've been following a yale course online during my working hours when I can listen to something while working. It's just a very basic introduction into contemporary American politics, also linked to the world stage. It's been really informative. There was an incredible segment on how the republican party got rid of the "estate tax".

And they did it, by framing the tax as a "death-tax" which is immoral. This sense of immorality, create a base that all wanted to get rid of a tax, feeling as if they themselves were burdened by it, even though the tax only taxed 2% of people that died... mainly, the extreme rich people.

The entire case is discussed here:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6Ng0N26MGk]

long video, but the guys lectures are pretty well constructed and worth the view
@Kwek00 That Frieberg piece is one of the funniest and most brilliant things I have ever heard in my life

And the smartest among us think they are ordinary.

But mostly I'm a MORON so proud I can follow some of the best contributions here 😝
@Kwek00 It was sinister. Now we have MORE work to do making taxation close to more equitable. Its a huge problem and the culture shows it in every way. Shows the professed/actual dichotomy too in the "reality" of things....
I couldnt get through all that. I will say its impossible not to be messed around by it cause esp these days its impossible to see the difference between a hustling message and any other kind and even harder too see what the real message is,

most times its probably something like "Be afraid all the time" or

"relax but only how and when and why we tell u"..and the like

vauge but omnipresent
Sargon Pie; See it here all the time. Those "nut pickers" don't release how much of a real nut they are. I love to study the logical fallacies and reveal the rhetoric; and how it is using these logical fallacies to manipulate minds and social discourse. I don't know when it will stop.
JimBeam · M
Congratz you absolute bimbo.
DeWayfarer · 61-69, M
The only way around it is to get media from several sources. I don't use any one source. Not on TV, not only online.

When the CDC started to hide information I stopped using them. It is now a presidential tool.

Announced today HHS is now controlling the CDC data.

Actually I haven't trusted even CDC website data. That "website" data has been under government control the past month. Not really from the CDC. The CDC never had control over the website itself and outsourced the whole website.

Website maintenance just isn't the CDCs thing. 🤷‍♂️
DeWayfarer · 61-69, M
@Elevatorpitches sorry I don't know who your referring to.

If your talking about technique. That depends on the search engine. Each has their options set up differently.

Like with duckduckgo. They have site shortcuts setup differently than google.
DeWayfarer · 61-69, M
@Elevatorpitches

https://help.duckduckgo.com/duckduckgo-help-pages/results/syntax/
@DeWayfarer A great American news show..online and you tube too
SW-User
I don't watch t.v or cable news
@Elevatorpitches What gave the condo collapse legs was the connection to climate change. As the ocean encroaches more onto the land, the foundations of the shitty buildings in Florida deteriorate, with the inevitable results.
@LeopoldBloom They still don't understand or care about climate change there
@Elevatorpitches Yep. If you're a liberal, it's climate change. If you're a conservative, it's shoddy construction. Of course, if you ask conservatives if they would support stricter government enforcement of building codes, they clam up.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
I guess ome of my main takeaways from thos is to note that advertising languahe haz had a huge impact on political discourse.

You take a very broad definition of what propeganda is, which is fine. However, I've seen examples of these techniques right across the political spectrum and in mainstream and alternative press. So much, if not most, political discourse is propeganda if we apply these definitions.

Every news outlet on the planet has a political perspective and an editorial line, whether exolicit or implicit. Of course some is better than others and which must not confuse bias (which everyone has) with having journalistic standards.

Journalistic standards means using real evidence to back up points and at least making an attempt to present both sides, even if its hidden in the article.

I think the only answer is to be aware of these things and also to do some reading axross the political spectrum.
@Burnley123 In America the "spectrum" is getting ever more narrow. And people have ever-decreasing leisure time to read ANYTHING!
Wraithorn · 51-55, M
This is a quality post. Good food for thought.
Kwek00 · 41-45, M
@Wraithorn I didn't take a lot of time to write it down... I don't have the time for now. But the amount of propaganda posted on sites like this, is enormous. And the amount of time I see people go: "well that makes sense"... makes me shiver.
revenant · F
You will never get rid of propaganda altogether
revenant · F
@LeopoldBloom well thank you for responding
@LeopoldBloom what do u think of Intercept?

I got slammed for using that a couple days ago.... I thought it was right-on.
Whoops...antiquated leftie phrase/"meme"
@Elevatorpitches I'll bet Reality Winner wishes she had taken her story to a different outlet that might have done a better job protecting her confidentiality as a source.

I don't read the Intercept. Glenn Greenwald isn't with them anymore, but he comes across as a crank.
Bernays got all the american women to love the idea of smoking

and all the american people to love the idea of their own self imprisonment

in an alien culture...the land of the rich
Kwek00 · 41-45, M
@Elevatorpitches guess he was really good at what he wanted to do.
@Kwek00 related to sigmund freud

what else do we need to know??

his fear of healthy sexuality was/is equivalent to our fear of peace-and-love..and our own effing

survival.

yup
@Kwek00 I am ohpuhleeeze, one and the same with the glasses...just saying...
Good post. Although Doubtful anyone will read it.
@Average2122 I read a lot of it.

 
Post Comment