EOTO: Propoganda

           

Propaganda has been used for centuries as a way of persuasion. Propaganda is “a mode of communication used to manipulate or influence the groups to support a particular cause or belief.” Propaganda can take any form as long as it is captivating enough to encourage people to thing a certain way. There are plenty of events in history that would have not occurred if people hadn’t been manipulated into thinking it was right.

            There are good and bad sides to everything, it just depends on the person that is developing the propaganda which way they are taking it. Are they using it to convince people to think the Jewish holocaust was correct? Or are they using it with a heavy emphasis on the benefits that can be provided from believing a certain way? Usually there is at least a little lie in both sides, but one is more personal and the other is anti-someone else. 

            Most of the articles I read did not have good things to say about the motives behind propaganda. One article says that it “helps to pull people apart by forcing them into the role of combatants rather than citizens.” It is trying to make all of society see one specific way and be their only source of information. This way, they will have no reason but to believe what the propaganda has to say. However, this is not how society works in the US. So, if they began to try and implement it here it would be harder, and people would fight it more. Social media will play a big role in our government’s ability to have successful propaganda because people are so easily manipulated by what they read online.

            I think the idea of propaganda could be scary to anyone who doesn’t fit a mold, which is honestly most people nowadays. There is already a weak acceptance of gays, and mixed marriages. People also have mixed feelings about people who are homeless or people who are really old. If you are not in the prime of your life or helpful to the economy, then some people may see them as useless. That is where propaganda can step in and convince people of all sorts of horrible ideas. Humans have already proven that they can be easily manipulated to hurt other humans, so what is to stop it from happening again? 

            Propaganda could impact my friends and I because we are at the age were, we would get drafted for something, or our tolerance of other people could be affected. We have grown up in a time were tolerance has been promoted, but if for some reason that changed, we are still at an age were changing out opinions is not incredibly hard to do. It could change the whole dynamic of the society my friends and I have grown up in. 

            Propaganda is a sensitive topic because it has led to some of the worst events in history, but it is good to know about it so that you can catch the signs ahead of time and not be manipulated. Eventually, you will realize you didn’t believe what they made you think you did. 

https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-propaganda-definition-techniques-types-examples.html

https://jods.mitpress.mit.edu/pub/jyzg7j6x/release/2