propaganda

propaganda A term derived from the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, a commission of cardinals set up by Pope Gregory XV in 1622 with the purpose of spreading the Christian Gospel amongst the heathen. It gained its negative connotations during World War I, when it described the attempts by the belligerent nations to discredit their opponents and to promote their own national cause through inflammatory rhetoric, lies (or the omission of uncomfortable truths), and the invocation of popular prejudice. Subsequently, the development of a perfect propaganda machine by Goebbels (the dissemination of rhetoric through popular radio broadcasts, the promotion of the cinema, and the staging of mass rallies) was a crucial factor in ensuring the success of Hitler and the Nazi Party before and after 1933. Propaganda has also been used by other movements (e.g. proponents of anti-Semitism across Europe) and dictatorships (e.g. Mussolini, Franco, and Communist regimes throughout the world) to strengthen their emotional appeal, particularly when they were deficient in economic or political appeal.