"Characteristics of Propaganda"

From Ellul’s “The Characteristics of Propaganda” it made me realized how deep we the “masses” are flowing along with the media torrent. We are taking media as granted for the only real truth amongst us. The tactics of Propaganda have been used throughout History. Ellul’s talks about how these tactics of Propaganda have been used by the Nazis, the soviets to convey their message of unity, patriotism, freedom, and other messages to get the masses together as one. The way Hitler gave his speeches to the masses, with his loud voice to persuade the masses that whatever he said there was a true meaning behind it. And then followed media through which they spread the messages of patriotism. In a way these masses where completely brain washed from reality, as there was one body, one soul, and one brain. Unfortunately even today in the present in a democratic country such as the USA day we all also led to believe whatever the government or the media wants us to believe. We can see that now even the media is much stronger than before, it reaches to all the corners of the world. This media torrent is so massive, so vast that we are surrounded by a tornado, and it’s now become impossible to come out of it. We see this when the US Government told the masses that there are weapons of mass destruction, and the white house representatives told the media ”do you believe us, or Sadaam Hussein”. From this we can get clear understanding how US media stood firm with the government , and made people actually believe that there might be in fact weapons of mass destruction. American Media in particular was very efficient in portraying the government’s message. They are the major reasons why these tactics of propaganda have reached us with such a force through internet, TV, and other sources of the media. As Ellul says that “successful propaganda will occupy every moment of the individual’s life: through posters and loudspeakers when he is out walking, through radio and newspapers at home, through meetings and movies in the evening. The individual must not be allowed to recover, to collect himself, to remain untouched by propaganda during any relatively long period”