Propaganda

Are there any benefits to propaganda? When and why?
Blog #2

When I think of propaganda, I think of those annoying advertisements in magazines about a new TV show or medicine. Sometimes they can be misleading or seem too "pushy," but i think there are some benefits to propaganda.

Beneficial propaganda could be things such as advertisements for medicines. If you have a condition or sickness and haven't gotten it diagnosed, you could find help from these forms of propaganda. Usually they show the medicine being used by a certain celebrity (known as testimonial propaganda), with extra pages on information about the drug. If you read the symptoms and diagnose yourself, then you will realize that you need to talk to your doctor. (The celebrity endorsing the medicine has also drawn your attention.) This is one way which shows how propaganda could be beneficial to a person

Another benefit of propaganda, is that it is made to inform you. If you are truly interested in something, (such as a new TV show or a drug) then the advertisements will give you all the information you need to watch the TV show or find the medication. However, it still has the negative connotation, I think propaganda has this negative connotation because of the way it is shown. Using different techniques, such as glittering generalities and bandwagon, could be misleading. Glittering generalities is shown in propaganda through exaggerating things. An example of this could be food advertisements that way over exaggerate. A McDonald's advertisement in a magazine with a steaming burger and melting cheese is made to look appetizing. But, the actual burger that you will get from McDonald's isn't as satisfying. Bandwagon propaganda is used a lot, an example of this is one that we looked at in class. An advertisement for a magazine that "everyone" is subscribing to is supposed to lure you in. We all want to fit in, and buying this magazine will supposedly put you in the "in crowd."