How Propaganda Melts Our Brain

Not being critical of propaganda means being a slave to it.

During 2022 I was arriving back into the US after spending time in Russia and Turkey. Upon my entry through passport control at the airport, I was pulled aside and held in a room. I was then asked a series of questions by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The questions were about the purpose of my travels, addresses of my family members, what I do for work, etc.

One question in particular was memorable:

“Did you experience any propaganda in Russia?”

Answering this question accurately would have required context. But because I didn’t want to be held at passport control for longer than necessary, I gave a simple — honest — answer: I don’t watch a lot of Russian television and when I do, I don’t understand everything that’s said because I don’t speak fluent Russian.

The missing context I left out:

Propaganda exists everywhere. Of course Russia reports events differently from the US. Similar to how MSNBC reports their version of the news that varies from FOX. While this is obvious, some people won’t accept it. They can’t help themselves from thinking their version of the truth (i.e., propaganda) is sacred.

I recently watched an interesting exchange between Vivek Ramaswamy, potential US President (2024-2028), and NBC reporter, Dasha Burns. During the exchange, there are dozens of interactions that show how mainstream media propaganda destabilizes critical thinking.

Starting at around the 10:00 mark, Dasha can’t help herself from referencing NBC talking points. When Vivek counters by providing more context — such as the $5 million payment to Hunter Biden that may have affected decisions in Ukraine that have led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people — she locks up. You can tell she hasn’t fully looked into the circumstance. She only knows and understands as much as her manager(s) tell her.

If she were to say, “I need to look into that more” she would appear weak, stupid, and incapable of doing her job. People don’t like to appear wrong. They will become overly emotional and flustered as an act of defense.

While I cannot say that I support Vivek as president at this time, I do think his ability to interact with the media is worth paying attention to. While most candidates are using scripted replies and repeating what the polls tell them to, Vivek seems to be thinking for himself and standing up for what he believes in.

Moving forward, I’ve decided to write more about propaganda on my site. It’s a topic I have a lot of experience in, seeing as how I’ve worked in advertising for a decade and have visited over 30 countries.

I will end with this: propaganda isn’t inherently bad. It can be used for good, too. Being aware of its existence in the first place is step one. It’s similar to how an addict must first understand they have a problem before they can get clean.

The next step is to analyze the purpose of said propaganda. What’s the goal of the person using it? Is their goal aligned with yours? If so, are you aware how this can be used to manipulate your thinking? These are important questions that require more discussion. Stay tuned for just that in the future.

Until then — stay aware.

Raymond Duke