1. Propaganda Techniques
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2. What is propaganda?
A way of manipulating people using images and words to achieve a desired effect or outcome.
Propaganda clouds reality and gets in the way of clear and honest thinking.
During wartime, propaganda is designed to provide a focus for our mistrust and hatred, to dehumanize the enemy so they may be killed without remorse.

3. Glittering Generalities
Use of words and images that are generally favorable to everyone, including liberty, democracy, freedom, love, and civilization.
It associates a person, idea, or group with a positive feeling, but no direct evidence.
Problem: all of these words mean different things to different people.

4. Glittering Generalities

5. Glittering Generalities
Patriotism

6. Glittering Generalities

7. Glittering Generalities
Hallmark: Brother of the Bride commercial

8. Bandwagon
Hop on the bandwagon or else you don’t fit in. Everyone is doing it, so you should too.
This technique uses peer pressure – no one wants to be left out or left behind.

9. Bandwagon

10. Bandwagon

11. Quiz
Explain the difference between glittering generalities and bandwagon.

12. Testimonial
A celebrity or expert who endorses a product, candidate, or idea.
The celebrity may not always be qualified to speak on the subject.

13. Testimonial

14. Daniel Craig as James Bond 007
The time shown is 10:07. Get it?

15. Testimonial
Drake’s Sprite Commercial

16. Plain Folks
This technique has a person or cause being associated with regular people.
Candidates who are just like you – they put their pants on one leg at a time, too.

17. Plain Folks

18. Plain Folks
Also a testimonial. Most propaganda campaigns use at least two methods.

19. Plain Folks
President Obama Goes to Five Guys

20. Name Calling
This technique links a person or idea to a negative image.
The propagandist wants the viewer or listener to reject the person or idea.

21. Name Calling

22. Name Calling

23. Name Calling
A Sample of Donald Trump’s Insults

24. Fear Based Propaganda
Fear-based propaganda involves warning people that disaster will result if they do not follow a particular course of action.

25. Fear Propaganda

26. Fear Propaganda
The Daisy Attack Ad – 1964 Presidential Election

27. Understanding the Daisy Video

28. Fear Propaganda: Homeland Security Video
Fear Propaganda: Homeland Security Video

29. Black or White
Black and White - Presents an issue as having only two choices.
If you don’t like one choice, you must choose the other.
Also known as the lesser of two evils.
The Daisy Attack Ad (see Fear Propaganda) is an excellent example of this, too. (“We must love each other, or we will die.”)

30. Lesser of Two Evils

31. Condescending Wonka Meme

32. Assertion
Assertion is commonly used in advertising and modern propaganda.
An assertion is a statement presented as a fact, although it is not necessarily true.

33. Assertion
Trump’s Inauguration Crowd Size – the facts

34. Card Stacking
Card stacking is leaving out what you don’t want people to know.
It is dangerous because it leaves out important information.

35. Quran bursting into flames after air strike by the Israeli Air Force
Real or Fake?
Questions to consider:
Do you know for a fact that this is a real Quran? Could it be a different book?
Why is only the book burning?
Why is only half of the book burning?
If the building had been destroyed by an airstrike, why wasn’t all of the book destroyed along with it?
This image is an excellent example of card stacking propaganda because viewers are not given complete information.

36. Toy in wreckage

37. Credits
American Propaganda Posters courtesy of Northwestern University Library (
German Propaganda Posters courtesy of German Propaganda Archive (
* Techniques courtesy of Bryan Ross, West Hills High School.