Propaganda & Mass Persuasion: To Fully Believe

Thursday, February 01, 2007

To Fully Believe

Accordidng to Jacques Ellul, "Not only does propaganda seek to invade the whole man, to lead him to adopt a mystical attitude and reach him through all possible psychological channels, but, more it speaks to all men". Propaganda cannot be a complete entity unless it completely invades a man and makes him believe in the one cause it is trying to get the man to believe. If a man hears the propaganda and still only half believes in the cause, then the job is not complete. Propaganda uses many tools to achieve its goals. Tools such as the radio, television and internet are all used in the process of getting the people on your side. Sometimes even using familiar faces is a smart tool used to spread prpaganda. The two most important steps for spreading propagnada are getting the man to completely one hundred percent believe in the cause and spread to the masses, not just one or a couple of people. All of these steps and tools have been used to propagate many events such as World War 2, the Iraq War and Nazi control in Germany.

1 Comments:

Blogger A. Mattson said...

A decent post. Break it up into clear short paragraphs.

Ellul recognizes that propaganda must be total to be really effective. All "psychological channels" must be mobilized to shape public opinion. What you have written is accurate but very general. How do you get "the man to completely one hundred percent believe in the cause"? What are these "psychological channels"? Can propaganda alone start a war?

2/12/2007 9:26 PM  

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