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== Identifying propaganda ==

== Identifying propaganda ==

[[File:Photo 2026-03-05 21-35-48.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Apparantly, [[IDF]] troops presented their [[passport]]s at the border entry checkpoint.]]

[[File:Photo 2026-03-05 21-35-48.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Apparently, [[IDF]] troops presented their [[passport]]s at the border entry checkpoint.]]

[[File:Photo 2026-03-08 15-40-23.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]

[[File:Photo 2026-03-08 15-40-23.jpg|right|300px|thumb]]

The specific sayings or modes of presentation that constitute propaganda are legion. The common element in them is an appeal to ''emotion'' rather than to [[logic]]. Truth or fact, logically presented, might stir the emotions—but a presentation ''manifestly intended'' to stir the emotions demeans the information being presented. Of course, if the information is false to begin with, then propagandistic methods might be the only methods that would serve.

The specific sayings or modes of presentation that constitute propaganda are legion. The common element in them is an appeal to ''emotion'' rather than to [[logic]]. Truth or fact, logically presented, might stir the emotions—but a presentation ''manifestly intended'' to stir the emotions demeans the information being presented. Of course, if the information is false to begin with, then propagandistic methods might be the only methods that would serve.

# [[Loaded question]]s.

# [[Loaded question]]s.

# Distortions of fact.

# Distortions of fact.

# Extreme pronouncements, which are a form of [[Logical fallacy#Overgeneralization|over-generalizations]].

# Extreme pronouncements, which are a form of [[Logical fallacy#Overgeneralization|overgeneralizations]].

# Intimidation. This may include [[Logical fallacy#Proof by numbers|arguing from the numbers]] or reminding an opponent of the power of the particular individual or group engaging in the intimidation—or of an individual or group for which one claims to speak.

# Intimidation. This may include [[Logical fallacy#Proof by numbers|arguing from the numbers]] or reminding an opponent of the power of the particular individual or group engaging in the intimidation—or of an individual or group for which one claims to speak.

# Using abridged or out-of-context quotes to give a false impression, aka [[Quote mining]].

# Using abridged or out-of-context quotes to give a false impression, aka [[Quote mining]].

== Uses of propaganda in society today ==

== Uses of propaganda in society today ==

[[File:Full-spectrum-cyber-effects-final-p4-large.gif|right|300px|thumb|'''Full spectrum dominnce.''' [[US Government]] document from 2010 part of the Snowden leaks and sharing agreements with the [[UK]]. The [[Five Eyes]] program of the English speaking world (United States, United Kingdom, [[Canada]], [[Australia]], and [[New Zealand]]) use [[social media]] for “[[propaganda]],” “[[deception]],” “mass messaging,” “pushing stories”, and "discrediting” the intelligence agencies' enemies with false information spread online.<ref>https://theintercept.com/document/2014/04/04/full-spectrum-cyber-effects/</ref>]]

[[File:Full-spectrum-cyber-effects-final-p4-large.gif|right|300px|thumb|'''Full spectrum dominnce.''' [[US Government]] document from 2010 part of the Snowden leaks and sharing agreements with the [[UK]]. The [[Five Eyes]] program of the English speaking world (United States, United Kingdom, [[Canada]], [[Australia]], and [[New Zealand]]) use [[social media]] for “propaganda,” “[[deception]],” “mass messaging,” “pushing stories”, and "discrediting” the intelligence agencies' enemies with false information spread online.<ref>https://theintercept.com/document/2014/04/04/full-spectrum-cyber-effects/</ref>]]

{{See also|Snowden leaks}}

{{See also|Snowden leaks}}

Former president [[Woodrow Wilson]] is known his use of [[deceit]]ful political propaganda in the [[United States]], techniques first used by organizations such as the [[Committee on Public Information]], during the [[progressive]]-era in the early 1900s.<ref>[http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/196/4199/ Glenn talks with Jonah Goldberg, author of Liberal Fascism], ''The Glenn Beck Program'', January 15, 2008.</ref><ref name=journolist>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,597464,00.html Journolist Follows the Footsteps of Woodrow Wilson's Propagandists], ''[[Fox News]]'', July 22, 2010.</ref><ref>[http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/35938/ Glenn Beck: Obama Zombies], ''The Glenn Beck Program'', February 4, 2010.</ref><ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,593622,00.html Progressives' Fight for American Hearts and Minds], ''[[Fox News]]'', May 27, 2010.</ref> Today, propaganda has become the favorite method of [[politics]]. Both politicians and the commentators that support them routinely engage in it. The most egregious example of modern propaganda can probably be found in the films of [[Michael Moore]], which present a classic combination of factual fabrication, distorted interpretation, and emotional dishonesty.  On television, [[Countdown]] with [[Keith Olbermann]] provides a nightly dose of mean-spirited, irrational invective. Journalists have also contributed, forming groups such as the [[JournoList]].<ref name=journolist />  The vicious and frivolous tone of so much modern propaganda has contributed, especially in the United States, to a coarsening of civil discourse and, some say, a severe weakening of civility.

Former president [[Woodrow Wilson]] is known his use of [[deceit]]ful political propaganda in the [[United States]], techniques first used by organizations such as the [[Committee on Public Information]], during the [[progressive]]-era in the early 1900s.<ref>[http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/196/4199/ Glenn talks with Jonah Goldberg, author of Liberal Fascism], ''The Glenn Beck Program'', January 15, 2008.</ref><ref name=journolist>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,597464,00.html Journolist Follows the Footsteps of Woodrow Wilson's Propagandists], ''[[Fox News]]'', July 22, 2010.</ref><ref>[http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/35938/ Glenn Beck: Obama Zombies], ''The Glenn Beck Program'', February 4, 2010.</ref><ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,593622,00.html Progressives' Fight for American Hearts and Minds], ''[[Fox News]]'', May 27, 2010.</ref> Today, propaganda has become the favorite method of [[politics]]. Both politicians and the commentators that support them routinely engage in it. The most egregious example of modern propaganda can probably be found in the films of [[Michael Moore]], which present a classic combination of factual fabrication, distorted interpretation, and emotional dishonesty.  On television, [[Countdown]] with [[Keith Olbermann]] provides a nightly dose of mean-spirited, irrational invective. Journalists have also contributed, forming groups such as the [[JournoList]].<ref name=journolist />  The vicious and frivolous tone of so much modern propaganda has contributed, especially in the United States, to a coarsening of civil discourse and, some say, a severe weakening of civility.

[[File:Ukraine Army with Nazi Wolsfangel.PNG|left|250px|thumb|Officially approved for distribution in English propaganda poster by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Thank You Ukrainian Army” with the Nazi Wolfsengel patch, a [[hate]] symbol,<ref>https://www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/wolfsangel</ref> emblazoned on the sleeve.<ref>https://reportingradicalism.org/en/hate-symbols/movements/nazi-symbols/wolfsangel</ref>]]

[[File:Ukraine Army with Nazi Wolsfangel.PNG|left|250px|thumb|Officially approved for distribution in English propaganda poster by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Thank You Ukrainian Army” with the Nazi Wolfsengel patch, a [[hate]] symbol,<ref>https://www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/wolfsangel</ref> emblazoned on the sleeve.<ref>https://reportingradicalism.org/en/hate-symbols/movements/nazi-symbols/wolfsangel</ref>]]

[[File:Time fake news Denisova.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Ukraine Human Rights Ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova was actually fired in an unprecedented move for manufacturing fake news reports about alleged Russian [[rape]]s and bringing disrepute on the Ukrainian regime.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 June 2022 |title='This will not help us defeat the enemy' A new report looks at Ukrainian Ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova, who was fired after officials couldn't confirm her stories of rape committed by Russian soldiers |url=https://meduza.io/en/feature/2022/06/28/we-work-on-the-information-front |access-date= |website=Meduza |language=en}}</ref>]]

[[File:Time fake news Denisova.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Ukraine Human Rights Ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova was actually fired in an unprecedented move for manufacturing fake news reports about alleged Russian [[rape]]s and bringing disrepute on the Ukrainian regime.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 June 2022 |title='This will not help us defeat the enemy' A new report looks at Ukrainian Ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova, who was fired after officials couldn't confirm her stories of rape committed by Russian soldiers |url=https://meduza.io/en/feature/2022/06/28/we-work-on-the-information-front |access-date= |website=Meduza |language=en}}</ref>]]

From the earliest days of the conflict, the [[Kyiv regime]] focused on winning a global information and propaganda war rather than a military conflict.  Researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia published a landmark paper on August 20, 2022 on the activities of bot accounts on [[Twitter]] related to the conflict. The Australian findings were staggering – of 5.2 million tweets on the [[social media]] network from February 23 to March 8, 2022 at the outbreak of the conflict, between 60 to 80% were shared by fake accounts.<ref>https://arxiv.org/pdf/2208.07038.pdf</ref>

From the earliest days of the conflict, the [[Kyiv regime]] focused on winning a global information and propaganda war rather than a military conflict.  Researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia published a landmark paper on August 20, 2022, on the activities of bot accounts on [[Twitter]] related to the conflict. The Australian findings were staggering – of 5.2 million tweets on the [[social media]] network from February 23 to March 8, 2022, at the outbreak of the conflict, between 60 and 80% were shared by fake accounts.<ref>https://arxiv.org/pdf/2208.07038.pdf</ref>

Reverse psychology was employed for the first year of the conflict, reporting Ukraine's staggering losses, in excess of 100,000 killed, as Russian losses.  This conditioned Western media consumers to believe support for the war was accomplishing its goals, lessening the shock impact of being lied to and the horrors of war when it became apparent that the numbers were real, only the belligerent parties to whom the atrocities and casualty rates were attributed had been reversed.

Reverse psychology was employed for the first year of the conflict, reporting Ukraine's staggering losses, in excess of 100,000 killed, as Russian losses.  This conditioned Western media consumers to believe support for the war was accomplishing its goals, lessening the shock impact of being lied to and the horrors of war when it became apparent that the numbers were real, only the belligerent parties to whom the atrocities and casualty rates were attributed had been reversed.

A broadcast on the [[NATO war in Ukraine]] on the ZDF children's news program in [[Germany]] left viewers speechless. In it, the [[German]] built Taurus [[cruise missile]] and the [[French]] and [[British]] Storm Shadow, complete with mouths, noses and eyes, chat casually with a [[Leopard tank]] about [[Russia]].<ref>https://youtu.be/kgsVFZXnkAE</ref>

A broadcast on the [[NATO war in Ukraine]] on the ZDF children's news program in [[Germany]] left viewers speechless. In it, the [[German]] built Taurus [[cruise missile]] and the [[French]] and [[British]] Storm Shadow, complete with mouths, noses and eyes, chat casually with a [[Leopard tank]] about [[Russia]].<ref>https://youtu.be/kgsVFZXnkAE</ref>

Taurus’s squeaky girl's voice begins angrily: "We cruise missiles have to blow [[Olaf Scholz]]'s march properly." Whereupon [[Storm Shadow]] asks in an [[English]] accent: "Um, why?" Taurus’s response: "Well, because he refuses to deliver me to [[Ukraine]]!" Interjection from [[Leopard 2]] with an [[Eastern Europe]]an accent: "Just like they did to me!" Scalp chimes in: "Huh, screw you, [[Taurus missile|Taurus]], the Ukrainians are already getting me!" Storm Shadow: "And me!" Taurus replies: "You know you're one and the same cruise missile, just from different countries?" Storm Shadow: "It's the differences that make us unique and show us how special we are." Interjection from Leopard 2: "Hey, definitely post that on [[Instagram]]!" Storm Shadow: "Already done!"

Taurus's squeaky girl's voice begins angrily: "We cruise missiles have to blow [[Olaf Scholz]]'s march properly." Whereupon [[Storm Shadow]] asks in an [[English]] accent: "Um, why?" Taurus's response: "Well, because he refuses to deliver me to [[Ukraine]]!" Interjection from [[Leopard 2]] with an [[Eastern Europe]]an accent: "Just like they did to me!" Scalp chimes in: "Huh, screw you, [[Taurus missile|Taurus]], the Ukrainians are already getting me!" Storm Shadow: "And me!" Taurus replies: "You know you're one and the same cruise missile, just from different countries?" Storm Shadow: "It's the differences that make us unique and show us how special we are." Interjection from Leopard 2: "Hey, definitely post that on [[Instagram]]!" Storm Shadow: "Already done!"

Taurus: "No wonder they want me, I'm clearly the better cruise missile!" Storm Shadow replies: "More like an a** missile if you don't show up soon!" Scalp: "Hahaha!" Taurus shouts: "Hey, it's not up to me!" Leopard 2: "You don't have to blow up!" Taurus shouts, "I’m a cruise missile, that's exactly what I'm supposed to do!" Scalp, appeasingly: "You’re not allowed in Ukraine because your chancellor is hesitating and procrastinating again?" Storm Shadow knows the score: "The [[German]] technical term for that is 'scholzen'." "No," Taurus replies, "this time there was even a reason: Because I have such a long range, he's afraid I'll overshoot and hit Russia." Now Scalp's [[girl]] voice clears her throat and squeals: "Hmm… And what has Russia been doing for the last two years?" Leopard 2 repeats: "What has Russia been doing for the last two years?" Taurus, amazed: "Really?"

Taurus: "No wonder they want me, I'm clearly the better cruise missile!" Storm Shadow replies: "More like an a** missile if you don't show up soon!" Scalp: "Hahaha!" Taurus shouts: "Hey, it's not up to me!" Leopard 2: "You don't have to blow up!" Taurus shouts, "I’m a cruise missile, that's exactly what I'm supposed to do!" Scalp, appeasingly: "You’re not allowed in Ukraine because your chancellor is hesitating and procrastinating again?" Storm Shadow knows the score: "The [[German]] technical term for that is 'scholzen'." "No," Taurus replies, "this time there was even a reason: Because I have such a long range, he's afraid I'll overshoot and hit Russia." Now Scalp's [[girl]] voice clears her throat and squeals: "Hmm… And what has Russia been doing for the last two years?" Leopard 2 repeats: "What has Russia been doing for the last two years?" Taurus, amazed: "Really?"

== Counter-propaganda ==

== Counter-propaganda ==

[[File:USA blew up Nordstream.PNG|right|150px|thumb|]]

[[File:USA blew up Nordstream.PNG|right|150px|thumb]]

The best contrary testimony against propaganda is the truth. This typically means revealing the full, previously undisclosed context and exposing [[Logical fallacy|logical fallacies]]. Confusingly though, skillfully produced propaganda may itself be masked as counter-propaganda.

The best contrary testimony against propaganda is the truth. This typically means revealing the full, previously undisclosed context and exposing [[Logical fallacy|logical fallacies]]. Confusingly though, skillfully produced propaganda may itself be masked as counter-propaganda.

=== Brand Finance's 2022 ranking of the countries with the most soft power ===

=== Brand Finance's 2022 ranking of the countries with the most soft power ===

Brand Finance's 2022 ranking of the 10 countries with the most soft power<ref>[https://brandfinance.com/press-releases/global-soft-power-index-2022-usa-bounces-back-better-to-top-of-nation-brand-ranking#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThe%20composition%20of%20the%20Global,Kingdom%2C%20Germany%2C%20and%20China. Global Soft Power Index 2022: USA bounces back better to top of nation brand ranking], Brand Finance website, 2022</ref>:

Brand Finance's 2022 ranking of the 10 countries with the most soft power:<ref>[https://brandfinance.com/press-releases/global-soft-power-index-2022-usa-bounces-back-better-to-top-of-nation-brand-ranking#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThe%20composition%20of%20the%20Global,Kingdom%2C%20Germany%2C%20and%20China. Global Soft Power Index 2022: USA bounces back better to top of nation brand ranking], Brand Finance website, 2022</ref>

# United States

# United States