Propoganda v Persuasion

Propaganda is the expression of opinions or actions carried out deliberately by individuals or groups with a view to influence the opinions or actions of other individuals or groups for predetermined ends through psychological manipulations.

Ellul, 1965, p.12 Institute for Propaganda Analysis

A really useful insight into the relationship between politics and the media is provided by Professor Philip Cowley of Queen Mary College, University of London @philipjcowley in this Radio 4 documentary, called Ballot Box. Who argues that, ‘while there are good reasons for us to be worried, in fact many of these same anxieties can be witnessed being provoked by the introduction of much earlier, non-digital technologies, such as radio, TV, polling and even political posters’. All of which ‘have been both exploited by tech-savvy party operatives and simultaneously accused of simplifying and coarsening political discourse’.

Early uses of modern media technologies to influence behaviour

The distinction between PROPOGANDA and PERSUSAION is important when teaching media studies, as much of this subject is taken up by thinkers such as, Antonio Gramsci, Raymond Williams, Richard Hoggart, Noam Chomsky and Stuart Hall, who were clearly committed to the uncovering the relationship between popular culture (ie media studies) which is, in so many ways, clearly connected to the dissemination of political messaging and the engineering of social relations. In other words, looking at posters (particularly political posters or adverting posters and campaigns) is a good way to understand the complicated notion of HEGEMONY – the tug-of-war struggle for social and political control which can be analysed, understood and monitored through the study of popular culture (ie media studies!).

As Chris Burgess notes, ‘during the First World War the State produced hundreds of really famous posters in order to persuade the public of a certain point of view and they use tropes that we see in political posters all the time‘ (The Ballot Box 11:08). For example, the use of ‘an enemy of a horrible beast‘ and the ‘setting up of the other‘ (ibid).

For instance, there is the early use of posters, see for example, the first General Election of 1910, which was known as the ‘poster election’ where something like 1.2 million posters were used in London and where, according to Chris Burgess, ‘posters become associated with general elections‘. To trace this relationship look at this article: a century of political posters.

The use of modern media technologies to persuade and encourage citizens to support a political parties can also be traced back to early recordings. For example, The Land Song used by the Liberal Party in the 1910 election, which was produced and distributed as both records and song sheets (so audio and print form media).

For more information on this listen to this report by Andrew Whitehead.

The use of popular songs, singers and celebrities are a recognised technique used by politicians as they seek to boast popularity and popular support. See for example, how Grime fell in love with Jeremy Corbyn or Labour’s ‘Things Can Only Get Better‘ (see below) used in the 1997 general election. Overall, this suggests a strategy that seeks to connect and incorporate mass audience appeal into party political success.

So in summary, it is clear that there is a clear relationship between the media and the desire to manage and modify behaviour. So in any topic that you study, you first of all need to detail some facts and figures – essentially gather as much evidence and data as you can – so that you can then draw upon this when you develop (and show) your understanding of theories, concepts and academic ideas.

The significant point here is that this case study (the use of music and posters in General Elections) illustrates the way in which we could understand the differences between PROPAGANDA and PERSUASION. In that propaganda appears as overtly political and manipulative, whereas the process of persuasion often appears invisible at first glance, subsequently revealed as invidious, suggesting concealment, strategy, manipulation. Essentially, the heart of this post which is the technique(s) known as behaviour management.

Burgess notes that a lot of people who had been involved in the act of mass persuasion before the War were drafted into political campaigning, which perhaps sows the early seeds of growth for the development of PR, political lobbying and other advertising and promotional organisations, bodies, frameworks and networks; whose main purpose is to persuade a critical mass of the public to support a particular social, political or economic aim.

Look for example, at The Budget League, an organisation set up in 1910 by Winston Churchill, with the direct aim of campaigning to influence political parties and political decision making. Follow this up with a look at ‘Get Me Roger Stone‘ a Netflix documentary ‘exploring the life and career of notorious Republican dirty trickster and longtime Trump adviser‘ (imbd)

The Impact of Radio

In another post I look at The Language of Radio, particularly the ideas developed by Andrew Crissell, so it is worth looking at that in reference to this section. As the development of radio, as a means of broadcasting to the public clearly presents significant opportunities for those individuals and organisations who are looking to modify and/or manage behaviour.

For example, there are clear codes and conventions associated with radio broadcasts that weren’t immediately understood by political leaders. As Laura Beers notes, in the run-up to the 1924 election Ramsay MacDonald, Anthony Asquith and Stanley Baldwin were given the opportunity of a radio broadcast, and whereas Baldwin successfully adapted to the new medium both Asquith and MacDonald ‘essentially just recorded speeches made in the open air and didn’t really think about what the difference was between speaking from a platform at the Hustings and communicating with someone who was listening from their home‘ (The Ballot Box, 17:38). For instance, the way in which an intimate mode of address plays an important role in connecting up the listener to the broadcaster in way which is not commensurate with a large scale, public rally, recognised as the hustings process.

The ability to communicate on the radio and through print soon developed into an amalgamation of print and audio, found in both cinema newsreel and later television.

Television: The Drug of the Nation

At this point it is worth considering the role of the BBC as a founding organisational principle espousing the ethos of PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING. For example, the way in which the BBC assert themselves as acting in the public interest a concept which links to the ‘Transformation of the Public Sphere’, a theory developed by Jurgen Habermas, which prioritises the media as a crucial ‘fourth estate’ for commenting upon, critically evaluating and thereby regulating Government activity, thereby ensuring a greater spread of democratic awareness and participation. The transformation of the public sphere is based around the role of an independent, free press (which includes broadcasting) and aims for greater access to greater information that is free from government and state intervention and control.

As Turpin and Tomkins wrote, the ‘independence and diversity of the press are essential if the public are to be able to acquire the information needed for the exercise of political choice in a mature democracy’ (p. 511)

So now we have established a connection between the media and the real world – in this sense political communication. The next step is to consider how audiences behave when exposed to the media. Or put another way, what theories suggest about the way audiences consume media texts.