Propaganda

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About

Propaganda is any kind of widespread broadcasting of information that seeks to persuade its audience to predetermined positions, via any of several manipulative techniques (such as emotional cues or selective omission (e.g. interpretive framing), rather than to honestly and objectively document a process of truth-discovery via honest examination of evidence.

The word is also sometimes extended to include benevolent and accurate uses of these techniques, in which they are used towards convincing people to believe or understand the truth to which the best available evidence actually points, typically as a counter to malevolent propaganda or biases inherent in human cognition or culture.

Links

Reference

• Wikipedia
• Conservapedia actually has a pretty decent article, but categorizes it under "Liberalism" and "Liberal Traits"
• dKosopedia
• SourceWatch
• RationalWiki

Books

• Propaganda by Edward Bernays (1928)

News

• 2014/05/14 [L..T] How Five American Companies Control What You Think «The explanation is surprisingly simple: There aren't numerous US mass media news sources at all; there are just five. Five giant corporations control 90 percent of US mass media. And direct links connect all five of these media conglomerates to the political establishment and the economic and political power-elites of the United States.»
• 2014/03/03 [L..T] The Washington Post Uses Biased Experts to Promote Propaganda on Venezuela «The Washington Post's Feb. 19 article about the recent spate of unrest in Venezuela took a breathlessly laudatory stance towards the opposition against President Nicolás Maduro. The opening paragraphs offer a good indication of its tenor...»
• 2011/07/02 [L..T] Dr. Cynthia Boaz: 14 propaganda techniques Fox "News" uses to brainwash Americans "Panic mongering, character assassination, and scapegoating are just three of the techniques Fox News relies on to drive its right-wing agenda forward."
• 2010/03/27 [L..T] The war on WikiLeaks and why it matters “A newly leaked CIA report prepared earlier this month (.pdf) analyzes how the U.S. Government can best manipulate public opinion in Germany and France -- in order to ensure that those countries continue to fight in Afghanistan.”
• 2010/02/10 [L..T] Ridicule of Conspiracy Theories Focuses On Diffusing Criticism of the Powerful
• 2004/02/20 [L..T] Soldier for the Truth: Exposing Bush's talking-points war The neocons had three reasons for the US to invade Iraq: (1) sanctions were working, not leaving US companies in a favored position for doing business in Iraq; (2) the US needed a location for military bases; (3) the US needed to ensure that oil would continue to be traded in dollars.