Propaganda
- Downloads：6801
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-03-16 04:12:50
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Edward L. Bernays
- ISBN：0970312598
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Trevor
，
Good primer on understanding how propaganda works in practice。 Dated， since it was written in the early 20th century， but its good to see the mindset of those molding the minds， even if it's not as detailed as it could be in the psychology behind propaganda。 Bernays was either a naïve idealist or close to a sociopath， and in reading his background I tend to lean towards the second。 He either fails to understand， or deliberately obfuscates， the dangers of using propaganda for ill will， and seems Good primer on understanding how propaganda works in practice。 Dated， since it was written in the early 20th century， but its good to see the mindset of those molding the minds， even if it's not as detailed as it could be in the psychology behind propaganda。 Bernays was either a naïve idealist or close to a sociopath， and in reading his background I tend to lean towards the second。 He either fails to understand， or deliberately obfuscates， the dangers of using propaganda for ill will， and seems to think that the modern world could just be stable and relatively constant in general moral virtue and that propaganda was something good to be used。 Obviously hindsight is 20/20 since this was before the real rise of Nazism and Communism， but still。 As much as he gives lip service to it being accurate， he doesn't seem to understand that vying political factions would engage in it for control and that some would eventually become untruthful。 It's funny how he claims the New York Times is unbiased and unable to be exploited for propaganda purposes given the standards of her editors， given the propaganda they willingly engage in today。 The amount of spelling errors and issues with this print is really distracting， however。 Not sure if it's a direct copy from the original print but it definitely needs and editor for sure。 。。。more
Robin
，
Crazy to think how much we are in fact manipulated。 Definitely an eye opener。
Matt
，
The whole mindset is simply conspiratorial。 If you presume that no matter what there is a secret group somewhere controlling everything somehow， and view just about everything in the world as coming directly or indirectly from this group， then you've got the idea of this book。 The whole mindset is simply conspiratorial。 If you presume that no matter what there is a secret group somewhere controlling everything somehow， and view just about everything in the world as coming directly or indirectly from this group， then you've got the idea of this book。 。。。more
Jessica Pickering
，
Outdated in its misogyny but still relevant almost 100 years later in many aspects of mobilizing groups through employment of propaganda and PR strategies。
DomoKete
，
Sort of interesting but the writing wasn't that great and I was bored reading it。 Sort of interesting but the writing wasn't that great and I was bored reading it。 。。。more
Francesca Fauni
，
I've read it for my dissertation essay regarding Donal Trump。 Very useful and interesting。 I've read it for my dissertation essay regarding Donal Trump。 Very useful and interesting。 。。。more
Abhishek Kumar Yadav
，
Review is propaganda of this book market demand
Waleed
，
Decent enough book。 A solid 3 stars。
Warren
，
Some of the examples the author gives will sound dated as he talks about selling cars， skirts and pantyhose， but the overall ideas remain relevant。 One interesting idea that is discussed is that propaganda is not merely directed in a Business-to-Consumer fashion but that a particular business interest will seek to influence industries and organizations to persuade them， which then will increase their influence。 Most of what is described here we might today call “marketing”。
Robert
，
Dated， but it is almost 100 years old。
Eric Mongold
，
Bernays thinks he is defending propaganda， but he really demonstrates how insidious the PR world is， and this was in 1928。 It has had nearly 100 years to gather its power since。
Heather
，
This book was a miserable read for me。 I find the author's style very wordy and his constant reference to the "intelligent minority" very condescending。 I sloughed my way through and finished it， but it is not at all what I expected。 I was hoping for a look into how propaganda， as we understand the term today， is formulated to purposefully deceive people。 What I found was more of a book on advertising or marketing。 Perhaps I missed something， but I am not interested enough to read back through t This book was a miserable read for me。 I find the author's style very wordy and his constant reference to the "intelligent minority" very condescending。 I sloughed my way through and finished it， but it is not at all what I expected。 I was hoping for a look into how propaganda， as we understand the term today， is formulated to purposefully deceive people。 What I found was more of a book on advertising or marketing。 Perhaps I missed something， but I am not interested enough to read back through the book。 The chapters on education and art and science to be the most interesting。 The book was published in 1928 so the media discussed in the book， though still used， seems outdated and the author's style bombastic。 He has a nice ego。 I can say that the author does advocate for honesty in propaganda。 That sounds like an oxymoron！ However， the subject of the book is eternal。 People always want to know how to manipulate others or reach out to them with their ideas。 We still struggle with the best means to do that today。 I am sure millions are spent on researching the best means to reach the public that Bernays seems to see as so easy to manipulate。 Yet people like Bernays need the general public， right？ They need to reach us， urge us to accept their ideas or buy their products。 They need our attention， our money， and our support。 If anything， this book has taught me that I， and the public in general， need to be very discerning in deciding who gets our attention， synthesize ideas promoted to us by any source， and analyze the ways in which they are trying to get our attention。 And more importantly， why？ What's the bottom line for them？ To earn money， to control， to trick us into accepting legislation that on the surface seems reasonable but is in fact nefarious？ It is time to wake up， become educated， and to take responsibility for how to interact with the countless messages being sent our way everyday。 For we， the people， are many， and we are ultimately responsible for what ideas， products， and legislation succeed。 。。。more
Deon Louw
，
Out of the horses mouth
Sebastian Gebski
，
Before you reach for this one， you should know that it was written in 1928 and it has aged 'a bit' in some aspects。 Yes， the basics （foundations） are still the same， but obviously， mass media have changed a lot over the decades - some things were unthinkable before and they are absolutely normal in the 2020s。 That's one thing， but not the only one。 Society has changed as well， including the role of the women and so-called political correctness - there are words and statements here that some may Before you reach for this one， you should know that it was written in 1928 and it has aged 'a bit' in some aspects。 Yes， the basics （foundations） are still the same， but obviously， mass media have changed a lot over the decades - some things were unthinkable before and they are absolutely normal in the 2020s。 That's one thing， but not the only one。 Society has changed as well， including the role of the women and so-called political correctness - there are words and statements here that some may not like。Nevertheless， if you're capable of filtering out those 'inconveniences'， there's still a lot of reasonable content here - the author didn't try to present 'propaganda' as something unequivocally negative。 For him， it's a tool， one that will never cease to exist， so the point is to use it wisely and rationally。TBH I've reached for this book explicitly for the anecdotes - I've expected many interesting examples taken straight from the era when it was written， but unfortunately， my expectations haven't been met in that department。Strong 2。75-3 stars。 。。。more
M
，
A bit dated but worth reading。
Chris Concannon
，
Hardly got anything out of this book。 Only thing I learned was that if you want to sell people pianos then don’t talk to them about how great they sound， how long they’ll last， etc。， but to plant in the minds of people the importance of starting a music room in their homes。 This way the decision to buy a piano will seemingly be their own。 This same style of influence is the basis for propaganda strategy。
Guilherme Smee
，
Este seminal livro de Edward Bernays， escrito em 1928， é um dos poucos livros que são um estatuto sobre o que é a propaganda no século XXI e adiante。 Sua concepção da propaganda como um "governo invisível" pode ser vertida para outros espaços de comunicação e influência， como por exemplo a memética。 Contudo， vale dizer que além das definições da propaganda e sua mecânica， as demais seções do livro estão bastante defasadas， afinal a publicação tem quase cem anos。 Os capítulos que tratam sobre mul Este seminal livro de Edward Bernays， escrito em 1928， é um dos poucos livros que são um estatuto sobre o que é a propaganda no século XXI e adiante。 Sua concepção da propaganda como um "governo invisível" pode ser vertida para outros espaços de comunicação e influência， como por exemplo a memética。 Contudo， vale dizer que além das definições da propaganda e sua mecânica， as demais seções do livro estão bastante defasadas， afinal a publicação tem quase cem anos。 Os capítulos que tratam sobre mulheres na política， arte e propaganda， serviço social e propaganda e educação e propaganda estão bastante linkados com a realidade do entre guerras do século vinte e com o contexto dos Estados Unidos。 Vale， portanto， observar suas colocações mais teóricas em detrimento das avaliações práticas。 。。。more
Chris Bracco
，
Propaganda is sobering snapshot of the mind of the "father of public relations" in the late 1920s。 I’ve come about it nearly one hundred years past its original publication date。 Perhaps not surprisingly， there are parallels in today’s society that mirror scenarios mentioned in this work。Bernays laments the negative connotation that his （seemingly） most precious word has earned over the years leading up to his writings in Propaganda。 He would be disappointed to learn that the connotation remains Propaganda is sobering snapshot of the mind of the "father of public relations" in the late 1920s。 I’ve come about it nearly one hundred years past its original publication date。 Perhaps not surprisingly， there are parallels in today’s society that mirror scenarios mentioned in this work。Bernays laments the negative connotation that his （seemingly） most precious word has earned over the years leading up to his writings in Propaganda。 He would be disappointed to learn that the connotation remains strong as ever。You get a feel for type of man Bernays believes himself to be from his written tone—an invisible hand， a master manipulator。 His belief is that propaganda is everywhere and influences everything。 We can all take part in it， and must if society is to progress and remain civil。 Propaganda is perception carefully packaged and distributed wholesale。 Think you are in control of your choices？ Think again， Bernays insists。 。。。more
Dave M
，
This might be the worst book I've ever read。 It probably doesn't help that it was written in the early 1920s so the language was a bit clunky。 But there are other reasons， like his constant laundry lists in paragraph format and his inability to stop fellating himself。 That being said， it's short enough that I definitely think that it's worth reading as there are some interesting nuggets that can be applied to life today， as well as being able to see where we came from ~100 years ago and how we g This might be the worst book I've ever read。 It probably doesn't help that it was written in the early 1920s so the language was a bit clunky。 But there are other reasons， like his constant laundry lists in paragraph format and his inability to stop fellating himself。 That being said， it's short enough that I definitely think that it's worth reading as there are some interesting nuggets that can be applied to life today， as well as being able to see where we came from ~100 years ago and how we got to where we are when it comes to politics， advertising， social/broadcast media， meme culture， etc。 Just be warned， it's a slog。 。。。more
Shihab Ullah
，
'Propaganda' by Edward Burnays was written back in 1928 - a book detailing the importance and criticality of Public relation in difference spheres of our society。 It was quite intriguing to see how the very essence of the concepts laid out in the book still are so relevant in our present time， even after almost 100 years！ I've always believed 'Choice' is an illusion。 Macro economics， socio-political conditions， our social upbringing etc。 factors work in cohesion to shape up our thoughts and the 'Propaganda' by Edward Burnays was written back in 1928 - a book detailing the importance and criticality of Public relation in difference spheres of our society。 It was quite intriguing to see how the very essence of the concepts laid out in the book still are so relevant in our present time， even after almost 100 years！ I've always believed 'Choice' is an illusion。 Macro economics， socio-political conditions， our social upbringing etc。 factors work in cohesion to shape up our thoughts and the way we make decisions - leading the eventuality of a particular choice。 Burnays ventured on this very topic and investigated how 'Propaganda' influences our perception on different aspects of life like business， politics， education etc。 and creates the delusion of freedom and choice， as he quotes -“We are governed， our minds are molded， our tastes formed， our ideas suggested， largely by men we have never heard of。”We love to think we're rational human beings making educated decisions but Burnays argues- in reality， we're moved by our suppressed desires and impulses and if stimulated enough， we can be motivated to be directed towards something specific -'It was one of the doctrines of the reaction psychology that a certain stimulus often repeated would create a habit， or that the mere reiteration of an idea would create a conviction。'The whole book pretty much revolves around this concept where Burnays bring in different evidence and examples to prove his theory。 Overall， it was an enjoyable read！ 。。。more
Ked Dixon
，
Meh。 It was interesting but paternalistic
Cassie
，
lol we fucked
Eric Hultgren
，
After last week this is an incredible reminder that I cannot recommend enough
桂英 吴
，
Nothing new， Nothing interesting in the today's world。It's the old story written in 1928。 People who lived in USA may understand the situation than people in the other part of the world。 So it's validated only in US。I tried to read it 3 times （not finish in 1 time because it's boring）。 Though it's a thin book but wasting my time a lot because the writer didn't concise what's important。。。only telling the story without conclusion in each chapter。 Nothing new， Nothing interesting in the today's world。It's the old story written in 1928。 People who lived in USA may understand the situation than people in the other part of the world。 So it's validated only in US。I tried to read it 3 times （not finish in 1 time because it's boring）。 Though it's a thin book but wasting my time a lot because the writer didn't concise what's important。。。only telling the story without conclusion in each chapter。 。。。more
Garrett
，
While historically important， Bernays’ tome on propaganda can be dry and is itself oddly lacking in aesthetics。 Also， apparently in 1928 the word is written as aethetic。It is best read when combined with a critical eye towards our modern culture， oversaturated with propaganda and advertising。 To those who use retail therapy as a coping mechanism instead of drinking， it may perhaps convince you to buy slightly less crap。
Elsa
，
Un essai intéressant sur la propagande， qui reste d’actualité même presque un siècle plus tard。 J’ai appris comment les entreprises et partis politiques contrôlent même des éléments qui peuvent sembler extérieurs à leurs activités dans le but d’améliorer leur image publique。
Granget
，
Flippant ！ On se retrouve projeté dans la tête d'un des plus grand manipulateur de l'histoire。 On découvre le dessous des cartes de la propagande et les règles secrètes des relations publiques et du marketing。 Flippant ！ On se retrouve projeté dans la tête d'un des plus grand manipulateur de l'histoire。 On découvre le dessous des cartes de la propagande et les règles secrètes des relations publiques et du marketing。 。。。more
Glenn Friedman
，
very outdated theory
Bill White
，
Very interesting tale of how to use propaganda， which can be positive or negative， effectively。 The narrative covers how various groups have invented and used the tactics effectively。 Bernays， a successful propagandist for a wide variety of product producers and other influencers， "wrote the book" on what has become part of everyday life， namely the advertisement。 The book is well written and an easy read， but don't let that fool you， propaganda is powerful tool to be used responsibly。 Very interesting tale of how to use propaganda， which can be positive or negative， effectively。 The narrative covers how various groups have invented and used the tactics effectively。 Bernays， a successful propagandist for a wide variety of product producers and other influencers， "wrote the book" on what has become part of everyday life， namely the advertisement。 The book is well written and an easy read， but don't let that fool you， propaganda is powerful tool to be used responsibly。 。。。more
Jacek Bartczak
，