Influences Of Propaganda And Public Relations

“Propaganda” has taken on a negative connotation over the centuries. From the times of industrialization, to the red scare, to war, propaganda has been with the public in hopes of persuasion and presenting new or different ideals. The question is: what are the influences of propaganda and public relations? Are their powers, and their impacts, directly positive or negative? In the cases of Michael Schudson and Edward Bernays, it depends on whom you ask. Publicity agent Edward Bernays’ book Propaganda (2005) reaches out to inform the public on matters of propagating and public relations. As he shows the influences of propaganda in modern society, and outlines its “gradually evolving code of ethics,” (Bernays 2005, 18) Bernays’ audience is presented with a tame view of public relations and advertising. Introducing the revolution of government and the public, he mentions power “passed from the king and the aristocracy to the bourgeoisie” (Bernays 2005, 19). Continuing, he describes the transition from being subjects to …show more content…
After the 1920’s, journalism found itself a new ideal perspective in its own code of ethics: objectivity. (Schudson 1978, 121) As editors grew rigorous on printing only factual works, journalists found themselves priding on their reporting only what was fact without the interference of values or personal opinion. Subjectivity was no longer of interest or matter to the newspapers, and the devotion to facts within both media and the public reflected a true alteration of ethics in the democratic market economy. (Schudson 1978, 83) However, during the time of World War I, news media and the public were presented with the truest forms of publicity and propaganda with the efforts of public relations