This blog series will dive deep into the world of propaganda, exploring its history, its techniques, and its transformation into the digital age using new platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. One of the focuses will be on how propaganda was used by the NSDAP and how it has evolved and is used by other right-wing parties today. In addition, these blog posts will look at storytelling within propaganda techniques, the importance of telling good stories, and how certain techniques can influence and spread messages.
Hereby starting with introducing the term propaganda, according to Bildung (2024) propaganda is “the attempt to deliberately influence people’s thoughts, actions and feelings,” most of the time used within politics, but also used in advertisement to a certain point. Propaganda is characterized by the fact that it does not present the different sides of an issue; rather, it mixes opinions and information. Those who engage in propaganda do not want to discuss and convince with proper arguments, but use all kinds of ways to influence people’s emotions and behavior, for example by drawing from negative emotions such as anger or fear. Within politics, the form of propaganda not only uses emotional appeals but also name calling, scare tactics, manipulating information, and the use of symbols, stereotypes, and slogans among many other ways (Cuncic, 2023).
Propaganda is not a modern invention. It has been around for a long time and already started in ancient times when the government used propaganda to advance their political cause for their own benefit. Within that time one of the people that used it to their advantage was Octavian. He carried out an aggressive propaganda campaign to destroy his rival Marcus Antonius and thus became emperor of Rome (Sifuentes & Raddato, 2024). These early techniques amongst many others laid the groundwork for the more advanced methods also seen in regimes like Nazi Germany during the 1930s, which had perfected the use of film, posters, and speeches to manipulate public opinion.
The start of Nazi propaganda as it was later known started in the period after the First World War. The economic dysfunction and dissatisfaction of the Weimar Republic provided a fertile ground for extremist ideologies. This dysfunction and dissatisfaction amongst the people could later be utilized by the Nazi Party. Under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, the party capitalized on this discontent by, presenting a seductive and appealing narrative that promised a new positive future for Germany. Joseph Goebbels, the propaganda minister, was a master at manipulating public opinion. He knew how to use the power of emotional appeals, repetition, and simplification. His propaganda machine produced a large amount of messages aimed at finding enemies to against, glorifying the Führer and conveying a certain sense of national unity. (Propaganda and the Nazi Rise to Power – the Holocaust Explained: Designed for Schools, 1923). With his campaign, he managed to create an image of Hitler which was later known as the “The Hitler Myth” portraying an image of him as “Superman” and as a heroic leader of his political party (Ian Kershaw, n.d.).
Nowadays, the typical term propaganda can mainly be associated in connection with authoritarian or totalitarian states. Here it is usually used with different forms of information being controlled by direct censorship or the monopolization of the media.
However, even today, different ways of propaganda are still being used through new social media platforms and so-called TikTok campaigns by right-wing political parties such as AfD or FPÖ. Hereby the essence of propaganda lies in its storytelling and visual approach. Through the use of carefully crafted images and narratives, emotions such as fear, pride, and hope are used to convey messages that resonate strongly with the platform’s viewers. Platforms such as TikTok also allow for short, emotionally charged videos that combine engaging visuals with persuasive messaging (Reinders, n.d.). With this strategy, they can reach a much younger and broader target audience.
In the following blog series, other topics and questions are going to be explored such as: How was propaganda used in the media during the Nazi regime? What storytelling techniques made propaganda so effective in evoking emotions and influencing opinions? How do visual elements like color, typography, and video editing enhance propaganda’s impact?
References:
Bildung, B. F. P. (2024, January 22). Was ist Propaganda? bpb.de. https://www.bpb.de/themen/medien-journalismus/krieg-in-den-medien/130697/was-ist-propaganda/
Sifuentes, J., & Raddato, C. (2024). The propaganda of Octavian and Mark Antony’s civil war. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1474/the-propaganda-of-octavian-and-mark-antonys-civil/
Ian Kershaw. (n.d.). The Hitler myth. In historytoday.com. http://history-groby.weebly.com/uploads/2/9/5/6/29562653/hitler_myth.pdf
Propaganda and the Nazi rise to power – The Holocaust Explained: Designed for schools. (1923, November 9). https://www.theholocaustexplained.org/the-nazi-rise-to-power/the-nazi-rise-to-power/propaganda/
Reinders, S. (n.d.). Modern propaganda: hiding in plain sight. Scot Scoop News. https://scotscoop.com/modern-propaganda-hiding-in-plain-sight/
Cuncic, A., MA. (2023, November 29). How does propaganda work? Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/how-does-propaganda-work-5224974
