[[File:Backrdv12n2.jpg|thumb|A propaganda poster shows the cult of personality of [[Karl Marx]], [[Friedrich Engels]], [[Lenin]] and [[Stalin]]]]
A '''cult of personality''' refers to a situation in which the leader an individual, often dictator of a country, usually a dictator, uses propaganda and media tools excessively to create a strongly positive image of himself, often with unquestioning praise. People who have created a cult of personality include [[Kim Jong Il]], [[Mao Tse Tung]], [[Saddam Hussein]], [[Adolf Hitler]], [[Lenin]], [[Josef Stalin]], [[Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini]] and [[Fidel Castro]].
Whilst rarer in democratic societies, there are examples of a personality cult being built around certain western political leaders including [[John F. Kennedy]], [[Margaret Thatcher]], [[Ronald Reagan]], and most recently [[Barack Obama]].