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Month: February 2016

How pro sports uses the national anthem for promotional propaganda

How pro sports uses the national anthem for promotional propaganda

TL;DR Summary Why do we play the national anthem at sports events? Why do we have the emotional re-uniting of families with a service member returned from overseas at sports events? These seemingly spontaneous events of joy and patriotism are often paid endorsements from the marketing budget of the the US Department of Defense. In the case of the Superbowl, the symbolism is taken to an extreme to link pro sports with patriotism, military and nationalist pride.

Rare use of data in an effective propaganda poster

Rare use of data in an effective propaganda poster

This is from Bill Gates. I have not vetted the content of the chart, but I assume it is true and correct. TL;DR Summary The point of this poster is to illustrate R&D spending on 3 categories: Defense, health and energy. It is effective in part due to its simplicity and use of  data. Data is not used often in propaganda posters because emotional appeals and pithy quotes are processed quickly by our System 1 thinking.

Abraham Lincoln’s false quote used to endorse political meme

Abraham Lincoln’s false quote used to endorse political meme

A common social media propaganda technique uses quotes from well known historical figures or celebrities to strengthen one’s argument. Not surprisingly, many of the quotes are fiction, some are attributed to the wrong person, and many are taken wildly out of context. TL;DR Summary This quote suggests  Abraham Lincoln had a prescient warning about corporations in America’s future. But he never said this. This is a made up quote. The goal, as propaganda, is to rely on the “Appeal to…

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Abraham Lincoln's false quote used to endorse political meme

Abraham Lincoln's false quote used to endorse political meme

A common social media propaganda technique uses quotes from well known historical figures or celebrities to strengthen one’s argument. Not surprisingly, many of the quotes are fiction, some are attributed to the wrong person, and many are taken wildly out of context. TL;DR Summary This quote suggests  Abraham Lincoln had a prescient warning about corporations in America’s future. But he never said this. This is a made up quote. The goal, as propaganda, is to rely on the “Appeal to…

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Sanders shows how to tell a lie using only true statements

Sanders shows how to tell a lie using only true statements

TL; DR Summary Each sentence is true. But Sanders is intentionally making a straight up, outright lie when he talks about the changing share of corporate taxes. Politifact, the NY Times, the IRS, the Congressional Research Service, the Congressional Budget Office, Factcheck.org and the Center on Budget Priorities all recognize the problem with these statements. Can you spot the problem? Due to the creations of Subchapter S corporations after 1958, much – perhaps most – corporate income now flows through…

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