Media As A Propaganda Tool
Media As A Propaganda Tool
Media As A Propaganda Tool
SESSION 12
RECOGNIZING PROPAGANDA
Propaganda appears in a variety of forms and uses common techniques to
successfully influence people, including:
Activating strong emotions
Responding to audience needs & values
Simplifying information & ideas
Attacking opponents
Propaganda is not the same as brainwashing or mind control. These terms refer to
psychological tactics, sometimes used in warfare, that are designed to subvert an
individual’s sense of control over their own thinking. Brainwashing usually requires
isolation of the individual from his or her social group. By contrast, propaganda is
often so ordinary that it becomes enmeshed with “common sense.”
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Techniques: The use of symbols and rhetorical strategies that attract attention
and activate emotional response
Environment and Context: Where, when and how people encounter the message
Means of Communication & Format: How the message gets to people and what
form it takes
Audience Receptivity: How people think and feel about the message and how
free they are to accept or reject it
Where is Propaganda Found?
Journalism and Public Relations: Public relations is the term used for
communication professionals who seek to shape perceptions and influence public
opinion on behalf of a business client. In general, people are not aware of how
public relations efforts have shaped the content of newspaper articles, blog posts or
other online information.
Government: Throughout the 20th century, the United States has generated war
propaganda by defining battles as conflicts between good and evil. Propaganda is
also used to help improve public health. You may be familiar with public service
announcements (PSAs) that aim to alter your behavior.
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Entertainment: Some stories are just entertainment, but many stories are also a
form of propaganda. Stories offer ideas and information about good and evil, right
and wrong, thus embedding values and ideology into narrative form. In many
movies and video games, violence is depicted as justified and morally courageous,
which is a value message that is generally not questioned in society. Another way
that propaganda is embedded in entertainment is through native advertising or
sponsored content, where a company’s world view is presented as a form of
entertainment.
Advocacy: People who are trying to improve society or create social change use
propaganda to influence public opinion. Activists try to promote social, political,
economic or environmental change through using communication activities and
public events that attract attention and influence people's knowledge, attitudes and
opinions.
PROPAGANDA TECHNIQUES
Propaganda is the biased use of information to influence an audience or to further a
specific agenda. It is a form of persuasion that employs many different techniques.
Ad hominem
A Latin phrase that has come to mean attacking one's opponent, as opposed to
attacking their arguments.
Appeal to authority
Appeals to authority cite prominent figures to support a position, idea, argument, or
course of action.
Big Lie
The repeated articulation of a complex of events that justify subsequent action. The
descriptions of these events have elements of truth, and the "big lie"
generalizations merge and eventually supplant the public's accurate perception of
the underlying events.
Black-and-white fallacy
Presenting only two choices, with the product or idea being propagated as the
better choice. (e.g., "You're either with us, or against us....")
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Cult of personality
A cult of personality arises when an individual uses mass media to create an
idealized and heroic public image, often through unquestioning flattery and praise.
The hero personality then advocates the positions that the propagandist desires to
promote. For example, modern propagandists hire popular personalities to promote
their ideas and/or products.
Dictation
This technique hopes to simplify the decision making process by using images and
words to tell the audience exactly what actions to take, eliminating any other
possible choices. Authority figures can be used to give the order, overlapping it with
the appeal to authority technique, but not necessarily. The Uncle Sam "I want you"
image is an example of this technique.
Disinformation
The creation or deletion of information from public records, in the purpose of
making a false record of an event or the actions of a person or organization,
including outright forgery of photographs, motion pictures, broadcasts, and sound
recordings as well as printed documents.
Framing
Framing is the social construction of a social phenomenon often by mass media
sources, political or social movements, political leaders, or other actors and
organizations. It is an inevitable process of selective influence over the individual's
perception of the meanings attributed to words or phrases.
Half-truth
A half-truth is a deceptive statement that includes some element of truth. It comes
in several forms: the statement might be partly true, the statement may be totally
true but only part of the whole truth, or it may utilize some deceptive element,
such as improper punctuation, or double meaning, especially if the intent is to
deceive, evade, blame, or misrepresent the truth.
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truth. It’s very effective, particularly with the advent of technology—in the
twentieth century, you go to radio, radio to television, television to cable. And
anyone who’s wanted to persuade a lot of people at one time masters that
technology.
On some level, these techniques benefit not just propagandists, but our own
politicians, our own companies, anybody with some sort of vested interest with us
believing a certain thing. So it feels like an uphill battle for the little lowly
consumer.
The whole use of even polling and politics all started in the 1910s, 1920s with
companies that wanted to use mass marketing. They wanted to sell products and
wanted to figure out better marketing techniques. And then the politicians figured
out that they could use those same marketing techniques to advance their cause
and get re-elected.
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The illusion of online support for a candidate can spur actual support through a
bandwagon effect. Trump made Twitter centre stage during election, and voters
paid attention.
Russia is the case to look to see how a particularly powerful authoritarian regime
uses social media to control people.
Modern propaganda uses all the media available to spread its message, including:
press, radio, television, film, computers etc.
Indeed, propaganda is so powerful because everyone is susceptible to it. This is
true as people exist in a rapidly moving and complex world. In order to deal with it,
we need shortcuts. We cannot be expected to recognize and analyze all the aspects
in each person, event, and situation we encounter in even one day. We do not have
the time, energy, or capacity to process the information; and instead we must very
often use our stereotypes, our rules of thumb, to classify things according to a few
key features and then to respond without thinking when one or another of these
trigger feature are present. Propaganda includes the reinforcement of societal
myths and stereotypes that are so deeply embedded within a culture that it is often
difficult to recognize the message as propaganda.
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While it is possible to go into detail about each point, we are mainly concerned with
numbers six and seven.
A Case Study.
There are many techniques and persuasion tactics the media uses to disseminate
information. We will specifically focus on three case studies in the France / Pakistan
nuclear issue that highlight different tactics the media use. What is important to
understand about all the tactics is that no matter which one is being used they all
follow the same criteria: it must be seen, understood, remembered, and acted
upon. Thus, propaganda can be evaluated according to its ends and interestingly
enough this is the same criteria that advertiser use every day in ads, and
commercials in "selling" a product.
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For example, media coverage that took such an approach attempted to use a
subset of social proof, where one casts the enemy by declaring it to be a friend of
an already established enemy. For instance, media took such an approach by
broadcasting the statement of Iranian Foreign Minister, congratulating Pakistan.
"From all over the world, Muslims are happy that Pakistan has this capability". This
allowed the media to use social proof and similarity to create an enemy as friend of
enemy.
To strengthen the feel of Pakistan as a friend of the enemy, the media continues to
use the dissimilar tactic or hatred through association by further linking Pakistan
with Syria and Libya.
The Jerusalem Post published a similar article on Pakistan’s atomic weapons,
starting with a reference to the Iranian Foreign Minister. Using the same
propagandistic method of creating an enemy through association, the article stated:
"Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi’s visit to Islamabad a few days after
Pakistan joined the nuclear club seemed to emphasize [the dangers of an ‘Islamic
bomb’]".
Largely misquoted, the term became used in much of the anti-Pakistani propaganda
of labeling by generalization. In fact, all the media coverage made references to the
potential threat of an "Islamic bomb." Such references are made despite repeated
statements from the Pakistani government explaining that Pakistan does not intend
to share any of its nuclear technology with any country.
Thus the media describe Pakistan in terms that will establish it as a global threat
because of their instability. For example, the Washington Post Quote of the Day was
by Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani engineer responsible for nuclear development.
It read as follows: "I am one of the kindest persons in Pakistan. I feed the birds, I
feed ants in the morning. I feed monkeys that come down the mountain". Although
the Post acknowledges the accomplishments of Khan as an engineer, they clearly
represent Pakistan in a way that is far from establishing it as an advanced country
technically. The rural feel of "monkeys that come down the mountain" is enough to
make any reader question the reliability of nuclear technology in a country that
appears to be far from modern.
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In fact, this propagandistic tactic is highly subtle, since the connection to nuclear
weapons is not directly made in the quote. It is not until the reader read the last
two lines that the connection is made:
Abdul Qadeer Khan
"the father of the Islamic bomb".
By connecting the speaker with the nuclear weapons, the Post was able to thus
connect the rural feeling created by the quote to the nuclear technology. Since one
does not imply the other, there is a sense of uneasiness created in the mind of the
reader. The critical point is that although the quote is correct factually, the context
in which it is presented, the specific form and placement of labels, is what makes it
propaganda.
By locating Pakistan in "one of the world’s most volatile regions" the authors quickly
establish why the country should not have nuclear weapons. The media uses this
tactic to help establish the ideology that the unstable region of Pakistan can only
cause problems with their nuclear technology.
In order to achieve this goal, the media had to take the focus of nuclear technology
away from the military implications and focus it elsewhere. Many media outlets
across the globe after France exploded their first atomic bomb on February 13,
1960 shifted the focus toward more political themes. This is a clear example of
the Dune affect, which states that those who control the media control the
opinions of the people. Subjectively, the media focuses on shifting the focus from
something bad to something good when it serves the ideology they wish to spread.
Furthermore, this exploits a well-known principle of human behavior which says,
"people simply like to have reasons for what they do". Thus, the media only needs
to give a reason for their message despite its invalidity in order for it to be
accepted.
For example, the media on the French test on the day of the explosion downplayed
all military applications of the nuclear technology. It stated: "The initial effect is
likely to be the strengthening of President de Gaulle’s position when soviet Premier
Khrushchev visits France March 15 (1960)". Moreover, the media continues to take
away emphasis on the war-related side of the technology by refocusing on politics:
"The meeting [with Khrushchev] will be followed quickly by de Gaulle’s trips to
Britain and the Untied States. In all three meetings he’s expected to assert his
views with more force than ever". Thus the reader becomes interested the
diplomacy that comes with the nuclear technology instead of the implications for
destruction.
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In another television coverage, the program actually shifted the focus from war
technology to disarmament talks: "The explosion placed France in a better position
to conclude agreements with the world’s atomic powers leading to nuclear
disarmament". Twisting the focus 180 degrees, from the destructive technology, to
diplomacy, to disarmament talks, the discussion program was able to spin the truth
or reality because it served the purpose of the propagandist who had control of the
media.
Similarly, the New York Times published an article a week after the test in which it
emphasized the impact of the French nuclear technology on NATO instead of war:
"By joining the atomic club, de Gaulle hopes to gain a voice in big power
disarmament decisions and to increase the influence of French diplomacy". And so
the propaganda tactic of giving any justification because people simply like to have
reasons for what they do comes into play as the article persuades the reader to
focus on the non-threatening nature of the technology.
The article continues by suggesting that France is worthy of nuclear weapons, since
they will not use them for ill deeds, the idea of giving them nuclear technology
would now seem logical. This is a persuasion tactic known as commitment to
consistency, which plays on human's "obsessive desire to be (and appear to be)
consistent with what we have already done". This tactic allows the author and
media in general to slowly bring the reader to a conclusion that would normally be
difficult to justify.
The examples of broadcast media using such a propaganda tactic are numerous,
and most can be found by studying articles printed and media coverage in different
international TV/Radio networks the week of the French atomic bomb explosion.
Indeed, there is more to the presentation of information than the facts one uses.
The placement of the facts and the order can slowly mold the understanding of the
reader. Through specific propaganda techniques reprogramming, authority, and
commitment to consistency the media person is able to take a potentially
dangerous situation and make the reader/viewer feel completely comfortable with
the various scenarios.
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Here are examples where truth reveals that the impression the media is conveying
to a dumbed-down, unsuspecting public differs greatly from what is actually
happening behind the scenes. By looking at these examples in a single location, it is
easy to see how the mainstream media pushes ulterior motives on the public, and
how important it is to be vigilant when consuming their info.
In this CNN clip of coverage of the first Gulf War in the 1990s, anchorman Charles
Jaco makes a joke of war coverage in Saudia Arabia and demonstrates how the
news is overly sensationalized for American audiences, and how hosts pretend to be
in danger when they are not. At 7:00 in this clip Jaco quickly puts on a ridiculous
gas mask for obvious theatrics while talking to a guest:
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Manufactured ‘Reality’ TV
The Biggest Loser
Americans should by now already know that ‘reality shows’ are staged. The popular
TV show, Biggest Loser, where overweight people compete to lose the most weight
for the entertainment benefit of the rest of the world, lies about the circumstances
of the training and weighing regimen of their contestants while using underhanded
methods to generate phony emotional responses from their contestants.
“They want the drama, the tears, the fights, the tears, the triumphs and the tears.
Producers would push you to cry because that’s what makes good TV. They
continually asked questions like “Do you miss your kids?” Needless to say, I broke
down more than once…
Have you ever wondered how the contestants manage to lose a staggering 12 kilos
in a single week? In fact the longest gap from one weigh-in to the next was three
and a half weeks. That’s 25 days between weigh-ins, not seven.
It turns out that many of the so-called ‘reality’ shows are actually scripted theatrical
presentations that count on the viewer’s suspension of disbelief to garner ratings.
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Today, social media like YouTube, Facebook and Twitter make it easy for ordinary
individuals to create or disseminate propaganda. Of course, communication is
always oriented to a specific goal or purpose, as people use symbols to build
relationships, convey information, entertain, inspire or teach. But the propagandist
does not aim to encourage deliberation or reflection. The propagandist does not
encourage independent judgement by presenting a variety of viewpoints and
allowing the audience to determine which perspective is correct. Instead, the
propagandist uses facts and information selectively, transmitting only those ideas
that help accomplish the goal.
In the end, it must be remembered that it is not enough to dissent vocally -- one
must be willing to disobey, to defy, to challenge, and to suffer any ensuing
consequences of these actions.
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Understand the situation and act accordingly. Only through this can one
recognize persuasive tactics in propaganda and how they shape our beliefs.
Conclusion
Whether for marketing or for manufacturing consent, the media industry is guilty of
using subtle and not-so-subtle tactics to influence our conscious and subconscious
minds to influence our opinions and behavior. There are countless other examples
of these practices; and discerning, awake people would be well served to be vigilant
of this when consuming modern media in any form.
You don’t have to be paranoid these days to acknowledge that you’re being lied to
and that the institutions we should be able to depend on for bringing us an
objective view of world are anything but objective.
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judge them not for their decision to support their family back home, but for their
wartime contribution.
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the early 80s and used to promote feminism, and is often mistaken for Rosie the
Riveter.
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only partially empowering them. The main purpose of this poster was to
increase the workforce in China.
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08. Thief!
This poster goes against child labor, and shows small children working hard
while a large and portly man looks on with bags of money at his feet. It depicts
him as stealing their innocence and childhood, due to the incredibly dangerous
nature of the jobs they were forced to work to help feed themselves and their
families while being paid incredibly small sums.
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09. Anti-Smoking
A powerful anti-smoking statement, this poster borrows from the classic Atari
game Pong. The cigarette acts as one of the ‘paddles’ and keeps ticking away at
the lungs one piece at a time. The viewer knows that if the game were to
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12. Together
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This poster was created in Britain during WWII. It shows an array of different
types of British citizens all coming together in a time of need. The ideas of race
and class are completely disregarded, and it encourages everyone to come
together and help their country.
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Playing on the desires of men, this poster alludes to the idea that joining the
service will attract women. It promoted the idea that serving was fun and full of
rewards, and chose not to show any negativity or harsh imagery to ‘scare’
people into joining.
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This poster created during WWII was aimed at dissuading people from talking
about the war and revealing important information about the US Navy to
potential spies. It depicts a man, floating in a body of water (seemingly after his
warship had been sunk), with the message “Someone Talked”.
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This propaganda poster encourages women to join the armed forces ‘for
themselves and their country.’ It portrays the women as strong and stoic,
looking towards the future, together. Perhaps they are looking towards the
future of the country, or their families’ futures.
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This is a campaign poster for Calvin Coolidge’s 1924 campaign. It shows him
steering the ‘Ship of the State’ alongside Columbia, who is the female
personification of the United States. It has his famous slogan ‘Keep Cool with
Coolidge’ at the top, and portrays him as collected and in charge of where the
country is going.
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This is an anti-war poster, and shows the death tolls for both American and
Vietnamese soldiers during the Vietnam war. It says that the war is over for
them, because they’re dead, but can be over for everyone if they vote for
‘peace’.
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19. Liberators
This Nazi propaganda poster depicts the people of the United States as
domineering and portraying a number of negative ‘characteristics’ of American
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citizens. They show them as money-grubbing and racist, and are encouraging
the German people to look at Americans in a negative way.
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Another Nazi poster, this one shows starving and homeless Germans, and has
the message that Hitler is their only hope for survival (“unsere letzte hoffnung:
Hitler” means “Our last hope: Hitler.”)
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The American Red Cross created this poster to encourage women to ‘knit their
bit’, and contribute to the war efforts by knitting socks for soldiers. Since most
military clothes were produced in factories, socks weren’t actually needed to be
knitted by citizens, but the poster acted to create patriotic involvement.
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This poster encourages Russians to help the country build more tanks in order to
defeat Nazi Germany. It shows both a man and a woman looking out into space.
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They look strong and hopeful, giving Russian citizens hope that the war will
come to an end.
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Another Russian poster, this one shows the emancipation of Russian women.
Instead of showing her in the workforce, they defeminized her, making her look
like a man. This in turn made the poster into an effort to increase labor in both
men and women.
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This propaganda poster, again from the era of the Second World War, warns of
the risk of German spies infiltrating the civilian communities of the Allied
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Powers. This message was spread consistently during the war and for some time
after it was over.
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Another propaganda poster from World War I, used to encourage British to let
their men leave home soil to take up arms in the war efforts on the European
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continent. Much of the propaganda disseminated during both of the world wars
was targeted at women “back home.”
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This poster encourages women who were left behind by loved ones who went
off to war to get a war job. It manipulates their emotions and plays off of their
loneliness, promoting the idea that working would help them pass the time.
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Canada officially entered the Second World War on 10 September, 1939. This
poster, designed to encourage Canadian men to join the fight in Europe, used
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the imagery of the soldier with one foot in Canada and one in Europe to
symbolize the pressing threat on national security.
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This poster was created for the United States Food Administration in 1918 by
William McKee. It encourages American families to grow their own gardens
(dubbed Victory Gardens) during WWII to help conserve food.
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Another modern poster, which is titled ‘Gaza One Year On, Still In Ruins’. It
shows how destructed and devastated the city still is after all of the bombings it
endured from Israel.
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33. Manchukuo
This propaganda poster promotes harmony between the Japanese, Chinese, and
Manchu peoples. Their flags are in the background, and the caption reads ‘with
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the cooperation of Japan, China, and Manchukuo the world can be in peace.’
The people look happy and peaceful, and are linking arms in camaraderie.
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This is the cover of a propaganda comic book. It shows what tomorrow ‘could’
look like for Americans if the United States became a Communist country. It
shows the flag in flames, and innocent citizens being abused by Communists.
This poster was commissioned by the Communist Party of New Zealand in the
1940s. The slogan, “This Way To Progress”, and the designers choice of having
every element in the poster directed to the right hand side of the page, combines
to represent the notion that communism is the answer to take the world forward.
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The plight for women to claim their right to vote came to a head in the United
States in 1920, when the right was officially granted. This was a women’s
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suffrage flyer circulated that year, spreading the message that the right had been
claimed, and should be exercised.
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39. Hope
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Another poster that scares families into buying war bonds, this one takes a
different approach and shows the enemy as monsters. Their long, pointed
fingers are stretched out to an iconic looking American woman and her innocent
baby. If you don’t buy war bonds, those hands could reach them, and end their
lives.
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This poster reads ‘The world now knows that the Fascists have nothing to offer
the youth but death.’ It shows a skeleton removing a mask, which is the face of
Hitler, and alludes to the fall of the Nazi regime.
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This poster was made for the military science fiction book Starship Troopers. It
says ‘the only good bug is a dead bug,’ and shows military men ready for a
fight. It promotes action and encourages people to enlist.
This poster shows two men rolling up their sleeves and coming together to get
down to work. It encourages camaraderie between the staff and management at
GM. You can see the distinction not only by the labels, but by the ‘blue collar’
and ‘white collar’ shirts.
This poster, commissioned by one of the Allied countries in 1943, played on the
emotions of its target audience: parents. The innocent-looking child, with the
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war scenes in the background, is struggling under the weight and size of the
Nazi cap and the skull badge pinned over his heart acted to reinforce the sense
of fear.
Another propaganda poster used by the Allied Forces in World War II to spread
the message of silence amongst civilians, particularly female civilians. This one
used the imagery of a woman dressed in a military outfit to appeal directly to its
target audience.
Taking a leaf out of Uncle Sam’s ‘I Want You’ poster, instead of portraying
Uncle Sam, they portray an attractive woman. She is saying ‘She Wants You for
the Navy’, and again plays on men’s desires for women to get them to enlist.
Richard Nixon ran a campaign that asked voters who they would want to lead
the country, which resulted in the slogan ‘Nixon is the One’. A political
strategist and prankster, Dick Tuck, hired groups of pregnant women to go to
Nixon rallies wearing buttons sporting the slogan, which indicated he was ‘the
one’ for a number of other areas as well.
The idea of ‘I Want You’ was used in many propaganda posters, this one
included. It was used to F.D.R’s advantage, and helped him secure his fourth
term as President. It shows Uncle Sam pointing to F.D.R and telling him he
wants him to finish the job, that America needs him to finish the job.
This illustrated poster shows employees and management coming together, and
in doing so ‘cracking’ Hitler and Hirohito. It encourages camaraderie at work,
and promotes the idea that working together can end the war.
This campaign poster aimed to get the labor vote. It shows Grant and Wilson
(potential President and Vice President) as hard working men, and represents
the idea that they will both work hard for America.
There you have it: 50 examples of visual propaganda and the stories they tell.
While most uncover dark and regretful features of our past, it’s heartening to
know that through history propaganda tactics have been harnessed to bring
about positive change. Which one did you find most compelling?
In its report, the OII describes 2016’s Trump vs. Hillary Clinton
presidential contest as a “watershed moment” when social media
manipulation was “at an all-time high.”
Many of the forces at play have been well-reported: Whether the
hundreds of thousands of bots or the right-wing sites like Breitbart
distributing divisive stories. In Michigan, in the days before the
election, fake news was shared as widely as professional journalism.
Meanwhile firms like Cambridge Analytica, self-described specialists
in “election management,” worked for Trump to target swing-voters,
mainly on Facebook.
While Hillary Clinton’s campaign also engaged in such tactics, with
big-data and pro-Clinton bots multiplying in number as her campaign
progressed, Trump’s team proved the most effective. Overall, pro-
Trump bots generated five times as much activity at key moments of
the campaign as pro-Clinton ones. These Twitter bots—which often
had zero followers—copied each other’s messages and sent out
advertisements alongside political content. They regularly retweeted
Dan Scavino, Trump’s social media director.
One high-ranking Republican Party figure told OII that campaigning on
social media was like “the Wild West.” “Anything goes as long as your
candidate is getting the most attention,” he said. And it worked:
“It's well known that President Obama's campaign pioneered the use
of microtargeting in 2012,” a spokesperson for Cambridge Analytica
tells Newsweek. “But big data and new ad tech are now
revolutionizing communications and marketing, and Cambridge
Analytica is at the forefront of this paradigm shift.”
“Communication enhances democracy, not endangers it. We enable
voters to have their concerns heard, and we help political candidates
communicate their policy positions.”
But social media manipulation did not begin or end with the election.
As early as 2011, the US government hired a public relations firm to
develop a “persona management tool" that would develop and control
fake profiles on social media for political purposes.
The British parent company of Cambridge Analytica, Strategic
Communications Laboratories (SCL), has been a client of the
government for years, working with the Department of Defense,
and The Washington Post reports that it recently secured work with
the State Department.
There is also growing awareness of hundreds of thousands of so-
called “sleeper” bots: Accounts that have tweeted only once or twice
for Trump, and which now sit silently, waiting for a trigger—a key
political moment—to spread disinformation and drown out opposing
views.
Azerbaijan: “What-aboutism”
Social media has been a part of his presidential strategy since at least
2010, when members of the country’s main youth group, IRELI, were
instructed to proliferate pro-government opinions online. As troll
training-centers multiplied across the country—one source says there
were 52 in different towns and cities, funded with government
money—a few hundred young volunteer-bloggers became tens of
thousands of trained trolls.
At first, they were encouraged to become bloggers, painting a positive
picture of the country, but focus slowly switched to email-attacks on
critics, managing Wikipedia pages and running promotional
campaigns on social media. As the group’s then-secretary general,
explained in 2011 to the national online news-agency, News.AZ:
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“Activity and scale of internet users are decisive in this regard. Our
objective is to produce young people who can take an active part in
the information war.”
IRELI’s influence began to fade due to internal politics around 2014
but the youth branch of the ruling Yeni (New) Azerbaijan Party took
over. Youth organizations are favoured as cybertroops around the
world because they are cheap, more adept at social media and easily
rewarded with government positions or scholarships.
In Yeni’s case, the methods are blunter than their predecessors: The
language is more aggressive, violent and degrading, with an emphasis
on scale rather than subtlety, with opposition journalists routinely
harassed. Personal attacks are typically taken as the best line of
defence. Occasionally the ongoing conflict with neighboring enemy
Armenia is invoked to drown out online discussions of domestic
human rights abuses with so-called “whataboutism”.
2014 the full scale of Russia’s current operation became clearer. Sam
Wooley, a member of OII’s Computational Propaganda research
team, told the Guardian: “Russia is the case to look to to see how a
particularly powerful authoritarian regime uses social media to control
people.”
The Internet Research Agency and Nashi are just two of several
organizations that train and pay trolls to attack Russian President
Vladimir Putin’s opponents at home and abroad. The fact that the
former is a private company and the latter a Kremlin-backed youth
movement, 150,000 members strong, shows the complexity of the
Kremlin’s strategy.
This is responsible for serving and regulating the establishment of all private electronic
media. Its mandate is to improve the standers of information and entertainment
through media and enlarge the options available to public in media. It is also
established to make the people's access easy to mass media at local and community
level. The most significant mandate is have checks on media organizations through
accountability and good governance.
The second factor was the authoritarian mind-set which shaped the exercise of
executive power. In the absence of a directly elected Parliament and with the
Constituent Assembly perennially unable to frame a constitution that could satisfy both
East Pakistan and the disparate groups in West Pakistan, palace intrigues thrived,
myopic self centered interests becoming sharp thorns which pricked and began to hurt
the press of the country. Shaped by ownership and control of vast tracts of land and
other wealth, accustomed to conventional subservience of the serfs, seeing the upsurge
of the pre 1947 freedom movement on mass level as a passing aberration which had to
be tolerated and used for its own purposes, the feudal mind-set looked upon the media,
particularly and independent press, as a constant irritant and an unacceptable challenge
to the supremacy of the ruling class, a status enjoyed by this for several eras under
British tutelage.
The third determinant factor was the acute sense of uncertainty about the future
stability of a country whose survival for not more than a couple of years had been
forecast by prominent Indian leaders. Combined with the conflict over Kashmir and the
first of the wars with India which occurred in 1948, the new nation faced a geo-political
situation rife with security threats. In such conditions, criticism of government actions by
Press can easily be seen as giving comfort to the enemy. Without a well-established
tradition of engaging in candid exchange and the acceptance of dissenting viewpoints,
the atmosphere facilitated a gradual increase in the influence if the military, initially
behind the scenes, as a part of the lens with which the state perceived the media.
Making up this quartet, was the fourth factor which shaped, policy, laws and actions
with regard to the press in the early years of Pakistan. This was the continuing volatility
in the political arena. An organization that was more of an emotional mass movement
inspired by the idea of an independent homeland for the Muslims, the Muslim League
as a political party entrusted with the tasks of leading a vast and uniquely constructed
new country into stable statehood proved unable to rise the occasion. Deprived of the
towering leadership of Quid-e-Azam in less than a year of independence, the party was
unable to quell factionalism and unwilling to transcend provincial and parochial
divisions to offer a large and unifying vision. Despite the sincerity and service of some
veterans of the freedom movement the political process very quickly began to reveal
internal strife, incompetence and corruption. While government controlled radio and
censor controlled cinema could not offer a mirror to the reality of these times, the press
was seen as an element that was aggravating the problems already being faced, instead
of helping to resolve the complexity of the situation.
One of the first decisions taken by the government in November 1996 was to change
the name of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to the Ministry of Information
and Media Development. This amendment has more importance than merely the
replacement of one word with other words. The term: "broadcasting" had come to
acquire the propagandistic and one sided dimension by which governments imposed a
one way dissemination of messages upon the people because the term: "broadcasting"
in it self reflects a one way function rather than a two way process of dialogue and
communication.
Secondly with the new developments of media technology which include media that
reach specific and small audiences, the concept of narrow casting has become as
important as the concept of broadcasting.
Thirdly and possibly most importantly, Pakistan is one of lowest levels of access to mass
media by the people. For example, countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have more Radio
sets per 1000people as in Pakistan. The task of increasing levels of access to mass media
and in turn facilitating mass media to increase their coverage of the population should
become the most vital priorities for the ministry, rather than the outmoded functions of
serving as an instrument for production of propaganda.
The caretaker government also introduced the refreshing and exciting practice of
conducting live telecasts and broadcasts of programs on current political issues and
social concerns of the people. Subjects covered included the conduct of Caretaker
Government itself, questions related to the fulfillment of wide spread public demand for
accountability of corrupt holders of public office, social problem and regional concerns.
Eminent individuals were invited to express their views freely and openly on these radio
and TV programs which were, for the first time, not subject to any form of censorship.
Adversaries in politics were also provided an opportunity to candidly debate and to
challenge each other viewpoints. This degree of freedom on the electronic media had
never previously been witnessed over the past decades.
The second law also creates a historic "first". It enables private citizens, groups, and
corporations to establish and operate radio stations and TV channels through the
electronic media regulatory Authority, 1997. Also, for the first time, the PEMRA
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Introduction to Broadcast Media
Ordinance allows radio and TV stations to originate independent news bulletins and
political affairs programs which have never previously been permitted in the 62 year
history of radio in the country and in the 32 years history of television in Pakistan.
Both of the above ordinances were tabled in Parliament by the Government of Prime
Minister Nawz Sharif and assumed the title of bills as per article 89 of the constitution
but lased on completion of their respective four-month phases as they were not
adopted as Acts. It has been indicated that the Government will support the passage of
these laws through both houses of Parliament to make them into enduring pieces of
legislation that will not be subject to the four months life of ordinances.
In a logical context, when an ordinance has been given the permanence of an Act of
Parliament through specific legislation or through a blanket provision the status should
be re-designated as an Act. However in reflection of the disjointed nature of legal
historical process, Ordinances such as the monopolies and restrictive trade practices
ordinance, 1970 continues to be referred to so many years as an "ordinance"- even
though it has long sense acquired the status of an Act of Parliament.
We find the above two laws which were formulated originally to secure media freedom.
These laws are Freedom of Information Ordinance, 1997 and Electronic Media
Regulatory Authority Ordinance, 1997.
Though the Freedom of Information Ordinance protects classified from public scrutiny
which is minimal protection present in all similar laws in other countries, the Ordinance
nevertheless offers opportunity to any citizen of the country to apply for copies of wide
range of government documents. Be they decisions taken at meetings in which
commercial contracts have been agreed upon or be they records detailing the terms
and conditions of agreements made by all the diverse departments of the government.
Bodies such as Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and some commentators have
called for amendments to this Ordinance in order to reduce the protection afforded to
governments to declare documents as classified.
from relevant fields of media and public service and with only two positions afforded to
government to enable participation by the relevant ministries concerned.
The law makes it mandatory for the authority to hear applications for licenses to be
decided upon only after holding a public hearing as also in case of cancellation of
licenses which can only be done when a public hearing has been held and reasons
specified therein. None of the members of the authority may be re appointed to a
second term of four years in order to prevent vulnerability of members of temptations
that may be offered by interested elements. The Ordinance for the first time
acknowledged the right of private radio and TV channels to present unofficial news
bulletins and current affairs programs. It visualized a healthy, free competitive of
information flow and debate.
By all accounts it is probably the most progressive law for electronic media in South
Asia.
Summing Up:
All over the world the citizens' right to acquire knowledge and information is
increasingly being proclaimed and recognized as a fundamental right. The international
human rights instruments as well as national constitutions and laws, acknowledge and
safeguard this right. An essential concomitant of this right is the right to freedom of
information and freedom of press. The right to know and have access to information is
essential, not just for harmonious development of an individual's personality but also
the socio economic evolution and political development of the society. Such right is
inextricably linked to making the government accountable, and its dealings and
operations transparent thereby ensuring improved governance. The provision of better
governance is indeed the central theme and ultimate objective of the democratic
philosophy. James Madison, a founding father of the American Constitution, linked the
right to, and freedom of, information to the very survival of the democratic system.
According to him "a popular government without popular information or the means of
acquiring it is but a prologue to a farce or tragedy, or perhaps both".
Thomas Jefferson observed that the freedom of the press is the 'eternal vigilance' to
guard the performance of the government. The degree to which the press is free and
independent is the degree to which it can perform its role as a watchdog. It helps in
preventing the government from showing laxity or inefficiency or becoming corrupt.
The constitution of Pakistan guarantees the freedom of expression and freedom of press
subject to reasonable restrictions that may be imposed by law. It is the responsibility of
the judiciary to determine the scope and parameters of the permissible freedoms and
the extent of restrictions placed on their enjoyment. The judicial process in Pakistan has
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Introduction to Broadcast Media
generally been supportive of the freedom of expression and sought to strengthen the
mass media. The interference by the part of the different regimes disturbs the
performance of media and creates hurdles in the way of information flow. Different
regimes of Pakistan formulated different laws to curb the freedom and to cover their
faults. As mentioned previously most of these laws are not for media, these are for other
estates of the country, especially the political estate, except two of them.
The word 'law' with media reminds us of a ferocious horse who has been forced to
follow certain predetermined pathways, but as it seems nearly impossible to control the
horse so the case of media is just like that. The more you try to organize the horse the
more you get in trouble.
But here are other ways to overcome the trouble; instead of dealing with the problem
by force we'd better put it in some sensible hands. It means, we'd control media with
code of ethics and morals rather than with laws or force.
7. 18. Issuance of License The authority has been empowered to issue licenses for broadcast
and CTV stations in the following categories: International Scale Stations National Scale
Stations Provincial Scale Stations Local Area or Community Based Stations Specific
and Specialized Subject Stations Cable Television Network Stations
8. 19. Issuance of License It mandates the private TV stations to broadcast at least 10% of
the programs in the public interest to be specified by the government and the authority
9. 20. PEMRA [A CRITIQUE] If PEMRA is an authority then it must be independent from
every kind of influence of the government Chairman is appointed by the President of
Pakistan Federal Secretary for interior and Federal Secretary for Information are the part of
PEMRA PTV and PBC are not the subject to PEMRA ordinance
10. 21. PEMRA [A CRITIQUE] Only censorship over private channels The qualification of
chairman is not very clear Chairman is to be eminent professional from any walk of life
According to the latest 2007 amendment, out of 13 members 8 would be government
representatives In 2007, due to promulgations of emergency and terrorism, the electronic
media was criticizing the government Now police have been authorized to take actions
against the broadcasters and their staff
11. 22. PEMRA Codes for Broadcasters and Cable Operators The category of PEMRA codes
is divided in two categories 1. Programs ( News, Current Affairs, Entertainment) 2.
Advertisements
12. 23. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs 1. No program shall be aired which a)
Passes derogatory remarks about any religion or sect or community or words contemptuous
of religious sects and ethnic groups or which promoted sectarian attitudes or disharmony b)
Contains anything pornographic, obscene or indecent or is likely to deprave, corrupt or injure
the public morality
13. 24. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs c) Contains an abusive comment that
when taken in content, tends to or is likely to expose an individual or a group or a class of
individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis of race or caste, national, ethnic or linguistic
origin, color or religion or sect, sex or sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability
d) Contains anything defamatory or knowing false e) Is likely to engage and incite violence or
contain anything against maintenance of law and order or which promotes anti-state attitudes
14. 25. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs f) Contains anything amounting to
contempt of court g) Contains aspirations against the judiciary and integrity of the armed
forces of Pakistan h) h) Slanders any individual in person or certain groups, segments of
social, public and moral life of the country i) Is against basic cultural values, morality and
good manners j) j)Brings in to contempt Pakistan or its people or tends to undermine its
integrity or solidarity as an independent and sovereign country
15. 26. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs k) Promotes, aids or abets any offence
which is cognizable under the applicable laws l) Denigrates the men and women through the
depiction in any manner of the figure in such a way as to have the effect of being indecent or
derogatory m) Denigrates children n) Anything which tends to glorify crime or criminals
16. 27. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs o) Contains material which may be
detrimental to the relations of Pakistan with other countries p) Contains material which is
against the ideology of Pakistan or Islamic values
17. 28. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Programs 2. Particular care should be taken to
ensure that programs meant for children do not contain objectionable language or are
disrespectful to their parents or elders 3. Programs must not be directed against the sanctity
of home, family and marital harmony 4. While reporting the proceedings of the parliament or
the provincial assemblies, such portions of the proceedings as the chairman or the speaker
may have ordered to be expunged, shall not be broadcasted or distributed and every effort
shall be made to release a fair account of the proceedings of the parliament or provincial
assemblies
18. 29. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Advertisings 1. Advertisings aired or distributed by
a broadcast or cable TV station shall be designed in such a manner that if it confirms to the
laws of the country and is not offensive to morality decency and religious sects of the people
of Pakistan 2. No advertising shall be permitted which a) Promotes or support sedition,
anarchy or violence in country b) Is against any provisions of the constitution of Pakistan or
any other law for the time being inforce
19. 30. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Advertisings c) Tends to incite people to crime,
cause disorder or violence or breach of law or glorifies violence in anyway d) Glorifies
adultery, lustful passions or alcoholic drinks or non-Islamic values e) Distorts historical facts,
traditions of Pakistan or the person or personality of a national leader or state dignity f) Fans
racial, sectarian, regional or class hatred
20. 31. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Advertisings g) Promotes social inequality, militates
against the concepts of human dignity and dignity of labor h) Is directed against sanctity or
home family or marriage j) Is wholly or mainly of a political nature k) Contains indecent,
vulgar or offensive themes or treatment
21. 32. Code of Ethics Given by PEMRA For Advertisings 3. The goods or services advertised
shall not suffer from any defects which are harmful to human health, misleading claims about
the goods shall not be made 4. No advertising which is likely to be seen by children in large
numbers should urge children directly to purchase goods of a particular brand or ask their
parents to do so 5. All advertisings must be clearly distinguishable as such and be separate
from the programs and shall not in any manner take the form of news or documentary
22. 33. Provisions of Ethics Which ethics PEMRA has devised regarding Contents that Media
have to follow? 1. Local Media Industry Protection 2. Religious Contents 3. Ethical & Social
Values 4. Coverage of Incidents of Accidents, Violence and Crimes 5. Privacy and Personal
Data Protection 6. Programming and Children 7. Languages 8. News & Current Affairs
Programs 9. Re-Enactment 10. Programming: Mix and Live Coverage 11. Advertising 12.
Errors & Corrigendum
23. 34. 1. Local Media Industry Protection Licensee shall ensure that the foreign content aired
in a calendar day does not exceed a maximum of 10% of the whole content Licensee shall
ensure that no program is aired in violation of the intellectual copy rights
24. 35. 2. Religious Content No content shall be aired contains derogatory remarks about any
religious or sect or community or uses visual or words contemptuous of religious sects and
ethnic groups or which promotes sectarianism, hatred or disharmony
25. 36. 3. Ethical & Social Values Licensee shall show deference to the ethical and social
values of the country and ensure that a) Any content that slanders any individual or group,
segments of social, public and moral life of the country is not broadcast or distributed b)
Content does not make careless references to any class or group of persons as being
inherently inferior or in any way discriminate against any section of the community or account
of religion, gender, age, disability or occupational status
26. 37. 3. Ethical & Social Values c) Behavior such as smoking and drug abuse is not presented
as glamorous d) Alcoholic, beverages, tobacco products or any other narcotics shall not be
shown e) Content does not contain anything that, when taken in context, ends to or is likely
to expose an individual or a group or class of individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis
of race or caste, national, ethnic or linguistic origin color or religion or sect, sex or sexual
orientation, age or mental or physical disability
27. 38. 4. Coverage of Incidents of Accidents, Violence and Crimes The coverage of incidents
of violence, accidents and crimes shall not incite, glamorize or in anyway promote violence
or anti-social behaviors Appropriate warning during broadcasting of these incidents
Close-p shots of killing or violence shall not be shown Identity of any victim of rape, sexual
abuse, terrorism or kidnapping or such victims, families of these victims' shall not be
revealed without prior written permission
28. 39. 5. Privacy & Personal Data Protection Licensee shall not obtain or seek information,
audio, pictures or any agreement through misrepresentation or deception Personal
information shall be published after written permission from such persons
29. 40. 6. Programming and Children Horror and supernatural contents shall not be published
Portraying children as financial burden on parents shall not be published Physical and
emotional welfare and the dignity of people Prizes aimed at children must be appropriate to
the age range of both the target audience and parents
30. 41. 7. Languages Abusive language shall be strictly avoided in dramas and talk shows
Superiority of languages Character association with different languages
31. 42. 8. News & Current Affairs Programs Objective, accurate and in balanced manner All
news bulletins shall be prepared and edited by the licensee through its own editorial board
Glorifying the news which effects are negative shall not be published Court proceeding
Assemblies proceedings Entertainment News
32. 43. 9. Re-Enactment Dramatizing the real story Must be entitled from the start to the end
Footages or re-enactment of following shall not be aired a) Executions or other scenes in
which people are clearly seen being killed or about to die b) Rape, sexual abuse scenes c)
Cases which are under trial in courts
33. 44. 10. Programming: Mix & Live Coverage A licensee shows content as per its license
category and percentage wise content set out in the terms and conditions of the license
Licensee may broadcast live programs if it is permitted under the terms and conditions of the
license provided An effective delaying mechanism has been put in place in order to ensure
effective monitoring and editorial control
34. 45. 11. Advertising Advertising shall not promote obscenity, violence or other activities
which are harmful to human health Alcoholic, tobacco products, drugs or narcotics are not
presented or glamorized Fake advertisings Foreign advertisings
35. 46. 12. Errors and Corrigendum In the event where any false news or information aired,
licensee shall acknowledged and correct the same on the same medium without any delay in
the same manner and magnitude as that of the false news or information was aired
36. 47. FUTURE OF PEMRA • PEMRA aims to digitalize the whole cable system. It will also
bring its new Direct-To-Home Television where the subscribers will receive satellite channels
beamed through various satellites and the whole system would be wireless. It is the most
widespread reception method through an intermediary in the form of a cable operator. This
will provide better quality coverage to the subscribers. The subscribers receive signals
directly from geo-stationary satellites. There are widespread complains of piracy by local
cable operators and this service would eliminate this problem to a large extent. The licensing
criterion for this service is still under process and will be soon decided by the Authority
37. 48. CONCLUSION • As evident from the meaning, Laws and ethics try to promote good will
and always appeal the conscience of journalists to shun mean-spirited attitude. All media
men should refrain from causing damage to reputation of a person or an institution. The
issue of media ethics is too broad and no unified field on media ethics offers rules or
standards that apply to all media fields
38. 49. CONCLUSION • It is the very reason why PEMRA is not carrying out its primary role of
acting as a regulatory authority effectively. If the laws cannot be executed properly then they
are good for nothing. If they are not being executed then their absence and presence are the
same. Therefore, further amendments should be made in the PEMRA Ordinance 2002 in
order to make it more applicable in today’s scenario so as to alleviate the chaotic impact of
Pakistani media on Pakistani society