Download Propaganda - Newark Catholic High School

What is propaganda?
0 Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed
towards influencing the attitude of a community
toward some cause or position by presenting only one
side of an argument.
0 Propaganda is usually repeated and dispersed over a
wide variety of media in order to create the chosen
result in audience attitudes.
Mythbusting Propaganda
0 Propaganda has grown to have a negative
connotation, though that is not true of all propaganda.
0 Can you think of any examples of positive
propaganda?
Types of Propaganda
0 If you remember the logical fallacies we discussed last
year, many of them are used in propaganda.
0 If you don’t remember the logical fallacies, here are
some examples of logical fallacies used to create
propaganda:
Fallacious Propaganda
0 Ad hominem – attacking one’s opponent
0 Ad nauseum – tireless repetition of an idea
0 Appeal to authority – citing prominent figures to
support an idea, argument, etc.
0 Appeal to fear – building support by instilling anxiety
or panic in the general population
0 Bandwagon – persuading the target audience to join
in what “everyone else is doing”
Fallacious Propaganda
0 Black-and-white fallacy – presenting only two choices
(or sides) to an argument
0 Cult of personality – creating a heroic public image (a
hero) to advocate a given position
0 Demonizing the enemy – making the opposition
appear worthless or immoral
0 Dictat – telling the audience exactly what actions to
take
Fallacious Propaganda
0 Disinformation – creation or deletion of public
records to mislead the public
0 Glittering generalities – emotionally appealing words
that are applied to an idea, but present no concrete
argument or analysis
0 Half-truth – a deceptive statement that contains some
element of truth
0 Rationalization – using favorable generalities to
rationalize questionable acts or beliefs
Fallacious Propaganda
0 Red herring – presenting data or issues that are
irrelevant to the argument at hand
0 Repetition – repeating a certain symbol or slogan so
that the audience remembers it
0 Scapegoating – assigning blame to an individual or
group to alleviate feelings of guilt
0 Stereotyping – arousing prejudice by labeling objects
as things the audience fears, hates, etc.
Fallacious Propaganda
0 Straw man – misrepresenting an opponent’s position
and refuting the misrepresentation
0 Testimonial – quotations cited to support or reject a
given policy, action, etc.
0 Transfer – projecting the qualities of one thing to
another to make the second more acceptable or to
discredit it
Nazi Propaganda
0 Nazi propaganda was produced under the Ministry of
Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, which was
headed by Dr. Joseph Goebbels, who often consulted
Adolf Hitler.
0 The Nazi party used newspapers, speakers, posters,
films, books, textbooks, comics, magazines, radio, and
fine arts to spread propaganda during World War II.
Example of Nazi Propaganda
0 This is a picture from “The
Poisonous Mushroom”
children’s book. One page
reads:
0 “However they disguise
themselves, or however
friendly they try to be,
affirming a thousand times
their good intentions to us,
one must not believe them.
Jews they are and Jews
they remain. For our folk
they are poison.”
British Propaganda
0 During World War II, British propaganda was
presented through cinema, posters, leaflets, books,
and radio.
0 Much of the propaganda in Britain called for actions
necessary to support the war efforts, such as
contributing to production, enlisting in the military,
and supporting yourself in times of need.
Example of British
Propaganda
0 This is an example of
British propaganda used
during World War II as
part of a conservation
effort.
0 The Ministry of Food
urged people to help
with the public burden
by providing for
themselves.
United States Propaganda
0 American propaganda was spread using posters,
advertising, comics, leaflets, radio, books, movies,
magazines, and newspaper.
0 American propaganda was used to increase support
for the war and commitment to the victory of the
Allied nations.
0 Some American propaganda was anti-German, antiItalian, and anti-Japanese, meant to oppose the Axis
powers.
Example of American
Propaganda
0 This piece of
propaganda combined
Nazis and the Japanese
into a two-headed Axis
“monster.”
0 This example plays upon
the fear of Americans in
order to promote
domestic production.
The Propaganda Project