As if propaganda was ever out of style, graphic designers comment on the value of a good, eye-catching (or mind-catching) piece of information meant to propagate support for an idea or person (H/T A. Sullivan). Meanwhile, someone else is looking to make a few bucks describing one of the many domestic propaganda machines.
Recommended Books on the subject you may not have read (not in any particular order):
- War Posters: Weapons of Mass Communication
- Readings in Propaganda and Persuasion: New and Classic Essays
- Munitions of the Mind: A History of Propaganda
- Premises for Propaganda: The United States Information Agency’s Operating Assumptions in the Cold War (see A.L.’s comments on this find)
- Selling War: The British Propaganda Campaign against American “Neutrality” in World War II
- War of the Black Heavens
- Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion, and U.S. Foreign Policy
Less recommended are the following containing interesting discussions and observations on the media’s role in (mostly domestic) persuasion and influence:
- The Media and the War on Terrorism
- Weapons of Mass Persuasion: Marketing the War Against Iraq
- Wary Partners: Diplomats and the Media
Promoted from the comments is a recommendation from Tim Stevens of Ubiwar:
And an example of how U.S. domestic policy can change due to the global information environment:
- Cold War Civil Rights
(book review here)
May I also recommend Nicholas O’Shaughnessy’s Politics and Propaganda: Weapons of Mass Seduction (2004).
What’s with all the “weapons of mass…” titles? They’re trying to spin off my subject-matter field! Bastards!