Propaganda Role In War

The Role of Art Propaganda in War The greatest super weapon of war has no casualties. It is unable to incinerate half of the globe or kill thousands, but still radically alters society. Without an audience, this weapon is useless. An inescapable and constant force that no one is immune to, propaganda loads bullets in the guns of war, fired by those brainwashed. It is not new. Humanity has, in fact, harnessed the power of propaganda for thousands of years, with individuals and groups alike manipulating information to influence the masses in their favor. Over time, new and more effective forms of propaganda have evolved. However, there is no time that propaganda seems to take a stronger role than during times of war. Often a forgotten player,

Nations struggled to keep their people invested in the fight, and subliminal phrases and images became the key to sway citizens. Posters would highlight images of the ideal man, masculine and strong, subliminally instructing others to “do their duty” and protect their homeland. This was prior to the establishment of laws that could coerce citizens to serve in the armed forces, meaning that most countries had to rely strictly on volunteers. Encouraging as many men as possible to join was vital to many war efforts, and this consistent use of propaganda made those who refrained from enlisting feel inferior and cowardly. This resulted in many successfully drafting into the military forces (“Posters”). Propagandists would also resort to twisting and even entirely obstructing the truth so that the public would see enlistment in a more favorable light. Posters would show images that helped to spread false or exaggerated accounts of certain events, such as the French poster that depicted the ruination of a countryside that was then blamed on the Germans. These corrupted representations of war aided in reminding the public the reasons why these battles were being fought in the first place (Cooke). More extreme cases of such distribution of misinformation are far more modern. With the incredible exponential growth and advancement of technology came far more complex and complete forms of censorship. In particular countries, such as Russia, China, and most notably North Korea, the government took over complete control of all forms of the media, including the exchange of images and information on television and social networks. Their use of censorship became so absolute that “the production and censorship of information were interlinked, critical strategies for the success in attracting following for state-sponsored ideologies” (Ma). With this, nations have the ability to efficiently persuade