In this course, we consider the varied pasts of propaganda – its founding ideologies, its practitioners, its practices and its material, technological and political legacies – in order to understand the complex roles it has come to play in our lives today. Along the way it asks, what exactly is propaganda, and how historically contingent have definitions of it been? Is it best considered an evolving method of communication, a constantly developing format, or a genre? How have changing ideas about human nature informed its development? What have been the parameters of propaganda’s effectiveness and how does this interrelate with censorship? What forces have shaped the development of propaganda and how? Might propaganda not only be inevitable in a society dominated by technology, but even desirable to manage societal change? These questions have value in their own right, but outside of history they should interest students based in RSIS, WKW and NBS, as well as across the School of Humanities and the NTU Institute of Science and Technology for Humanity.
In a digital age, it no longer seems contentious to say, `propaganda is everywhere and inescapable.’ We see it in international diplomacy and the news media, but also in the workplace, consumer culture and public health. More pointedly the theory of `hybrid war’ is encouraging governments (and non-state actors) around the around the world to develop new offensive and defensive propaganda capabilities. Students interested in understanding these phenomena in wider intellectual, theoretical and artistic contexts should take the course. It provides an intellectual grounding that will be of lasting benefit to students intending to work in the media, government and diplomacy.
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