Propaganda Types

28 Jan

“Propaganda is the spreading of ideas, information, or rumour for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person.”

The knowledge of propaganda types is highly useful in channelizing time and energy for one’s personal development by keeping oneself safe from outside distractions. It is vital for schools to provide students with a solid education on media and information literacy as part of the curriculum.

The knowledge of propaganda types is highly useful in well channelizing time and energy for one’s personal development by keeping oneself safe from outside distractions.

It is vital for schools to provide students with a solid education on media and information literacy as part of the curriculum.

Teachers must be well-trained in the subject to empower students to critically understand information reported by all forms of media.

Scholars have identified many standard techniques used in propaganda and persuasion as follows,

Hot Potato

This is an inflammatory (often untrue) statement or question used to throw an opponent off guard, or to embarrass them. Examples "Have you stopped beating your spouse", "When will you pay the taxes you owe?" The fact that it may be utterly untrue is irrelevant, because it still brings controversy to the opponent.

Stalling or Ignoring the Question

This technique is used to play for more time or to avoid answering a pointed question. Examples: "More research is needed...", "A fact-finding committee is working on this issue..." "I am calling for an investigation on this failure.." When asked about a tax increase possibility a senator replies: "I have always met the obligations I have to those I represent."

Least-Of-Evils

It is used to justify an otherwise unpleasant or unpopular point of view. Example: '"War is hell but appeasement leads to worse disasters".

Cause and Effect Mismatch

This technique confuses the audience about what is really cause and effect. In fact the causes of most phenomena are complex, and it is misleading to say just one of the following: "Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria", "Tuberculosis is caused by un-regulated capitalism that creates poor working conditions", "Tuberculosis is caused by a lack of effective antibiotics".

Weak Inference (or False Cause)

Weak inference is when a judgment is made with insufficient evidence, or that the conclusion does not necessarily follow from the evidence given. For example: Ducks and geese migrate south for the winter, therefore all waterfowl migrate south for the winter. Or, most rich folks vote republican, therefore most people who vote republican are rich.

Faulty Analogy

This is when a comparison is carried to far. Example: "The economy is following the same path as right before the great depression, therefore we will experience a stock market crash soon!" SLIPPERY SLOPE would be an example of faulty analogy. Slippery slope makes the argument that a shift in one direction will continue to lead to extremes (ex. smoking pot will lead to heroine addiction). It is not necessarily so.

Misuse of Statistics

Some examples: Average results are reported, but not the amount of variation around the averages. A percent or fraction is presented, but not the sample size as in "9 out of 10 dentists recommend...". Absolute and proportional quantities are mixed as in "3,400 more robberies occurred in our town last year, whereas other cities hand an increase of less than one percent". Graphs are used that, by chopping off part of the scale or using unusual units or no scale, distort the appearance of the result. Results are reported with misleading precision. For example, representing 13 out of 19 students as 68.42105 percent.

Fear

"Of course, the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger."

ad Hominem attack (or Deflection)

In this kind of propaganda, the messenger is attacked instead of the argument or evidence that is presented.

tu Quoque attack

This technique is when you respond to your opponent by accusing them of committing a logical fallacy or propaganda technique instead of addressing the claim of your opponent's argument and evidence. Ex. "You too are using fear as a propaganda technique"

Whataboutism (Logical confusion)

Whataboutism is a variant of the tu quoque logical fallacy that attempts to discredit an opponent's position by charging them with hypocrisy without directly refuting or disproving their argument. The idea behind whataboutism is simple: Party A accuses Party B of doing something bad. Party B responds by changing the subject and pointing out one of Party A's faults- "Yeah? Well, what about that bad thing you did?" (Hence the name.)

It is particularly associated with Soviet and Russian propaganda. When criticisms were levelled at the Soviet Union, the Soviet response would be "What about..." followed by an event in the Western world.

Pre-emptive Framing

"Frame an issue before other people get a chance to" (George Lakoff - On the Media Jan 2017) Ex. "The only reason the hacking of the poorly defended DNC (Democratic National Committee) is discussed, is that the loss by the Dems was so big that they were totally embarrassed" -Donald Trump. When in fact the Dems did not lose big, nor was is their fault that they got hacked.

Diversion

When a major issue comes up that is embarrassing or threatening, so a diversion is created so attention is directed away from the issue.

Damaging quotation

A damaging quotation is a technique used in propaganda to support or reject a policy or action. For example, opponents may distort a quote by claiming something that is not true.

Third party technique

See also: Soft power

Works on the principle that people are more willing to accept an argument from a seemingly independent source of information than from someone with a stake in the outcome.

It is a marketing strategy commonly employed by Public Relations (PR) firms, that involves placing a premeditated message in the "mouth of the media." The third-party technique can take many forms, ranging from the hiring of journalists to report the organization in a favourable light, to using scientists within the organization to present their perhaps prejudicial findings to the public. Frequently, astroturf groups or front groups are used to deliver the message.

Soft Power

The soft power of a country rests primarily on three resources: its culture (in places where it is attractive to others), its political values (when the country lives up to these values at home and abroad), and its foreign policies (when other nations see the country as a legitimate and moral authority)

In simple word, soft power relies on culture, arts, and science. It can also be formed through music, sports, media, and major industries like Silicon Valley and Hollywood, Bollywood etc.

Thought-terminating cliché

A thought-terminating cliché (TTC) is a phrase that ends an argument and suppresses cognitive dissonance. The term was popularized in 1961 by Robert Jay Lifton in his book Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A Study of 'Brainwashing' in China.

TTCs are brief, simplistic phrases that stifle critical thinking and debate. They are often used by people in positions of power within organizations to support control, group cohesion, or an agenda. Examples,

"It's just the way things are done here"
"It is what it is"
"We'll have to agree to disagree"
"You only live once"
"It's all about balance"

Transfer

Also known as association, this is a technique of projecting positive or negative qualities (praise or blame) of a person, entity, object, or value onto another to make the second more acceptable or to discredit it. Transfer propaganda is a propaganda technique that uses symbols or things that people have strong beliefs in to get them to accept an idea.

Transfer is when a symbol that carries respect, authority, sanction, and prestige is used along with an idea or argument to make it look more acceptable. Examples,

American Flag, University Seal, Medical Association Symbol (or something that looks like it).

The swastikas used in Nazi Germany, originally a symbol for health and prosperity) superimposed over other visual images.

The people are emotionally attached to their country and religion

Unstated assumption

This technique is used when the propaganda concept would seem less credible if explicitly stated. The concept is instead repeatedly assumed or implied. Examples,

"Corporate tax cuts will benefit everyone by growing the economy"
"Undocumented migrants should be treated as criminals with no rights"
"Preventing poverty is good"

Virtue words

See also: Transfer (propaganda)

Virtue words are usually connected to religion of the people generally, that produce a positive image when attached to a person or issue. Peace, hope, happiness, security, wise leadership, freedom, "The Truth", etc. are virtue words. Many see religiosity as a virtue, making associations to this quality effectively beneficial.

Ad hominem

A Latin phrase: (of an argument or reaction) directed against a person rather than the position they are maintaining.

Ad nauseam

A Latin phrase: Ad nauseam is a Latin phrase that means "to a sickening degree" or "to nausea". It's usually used as an adverb to describe something that is being repeated or discussed so long that it becomes annoying or boring or people start believing it as a truth. Usually adopted by media propagandist.

Agenda setting

Agenda setting means creating more importance to an agenda by frequently repeating the news. If a news item is covered frequently and prominently, the audience will regard the issue as more important.

Appeal to authority

Publicly, appealing to authority cite prominent figures to support a position, idea, argument, or course of action.

Appeal to fear

Building support by instilling anxieties and panic in the general population,.

Appeal to prejudice

Using emotional terms to attach value or moral goodness to believing the proposition.

Bandwagon

A large, often decorated wagon that carries a band while they are playing, such as in a circus parade or political rally.

Bandwagon propaganda persuade the target audience to join in and take the course of action that "everyone else is taking.

* Inevitable victory: invites those not already on the bandwagon to join those already on the road to certain victory or target. The bandwagon riders are reassured that staying aboard is their best course of action. (e.g., "The debate is over. Nearly everyone who matters agrees with me.")

* Join the crowd: This technique reinforces natural desire of the people to be on the winning side and join the crowd moving towards the fixed target. This technique is used to convince the audience that a program is an expression of an irresistible mass movement and that it is in their best interest to join.

Beautiful people

This type of propaganda is used by the advertisers of a product. In this type of propaganda the advertiser depicts or appreciate the attractive, happy people. This suggests if people buy a product or follow a certain ideology, they too will be happy or successful. For example, half naked models may be used in the advertisement to attract more viewers to spread the

Big lie

The repeated articulation of a complex events that justify subsequent action. In this type of propaganda is a mixture of lies and general truths supplanting the public's accurate perception of the underlying events. After World War I the German stab in the back explanation of the cause of their defeat became a justification for Nazi re-militarization and revanchism.

Black-and-white fallacy

Presenting only two choices, with the product or idea being propagated as the better choice. (e.g., "You're either with us, or against us....")

Cherry picking (also called card-stacking)

The brilliant propagandist is the man who tells the truth, or that selection of the truth which is requisite for his purpose, and tells it in such a way that the recipient does not think he is receiving any propaganda. The art of propaganda is not telling lies, but rather selecting the truth you require and giving it mixed up with some truths the audience wants to hear.

Classical conditioning

All vertebrates, including humans, respond to classical conditioning.

Classical conditioning is a learning theory that involves pairing a neutral stimulus with a positive one. For example, Pavlov's dogs learned to associate a bell with food. After the association is learned, the previously neutral stimulus can produce the behavior.

Cognitive dissonance

People desire to be consistent. Cognitive dissonance is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when a person holds two contradictory beliefs at the same time. It can also occur when a person's behavior does not align with their values or beliefs. Cognitive dissonance can cause a feeling of mental discomfort.

In this kind of propaganda, suppose a pollster finds that a certain group of people hates his candidate for senator but loves actor A. They use actor A's endorsement of their candidate to change people's minds because people cannot tolerate inconsistency. They are forced to either dislike the actor or like the candidate.

Common man or Plain folk

The "plain folks" or "common man" approach attempts to convince the audience that the propagandist's positions reflect the common sense of the people. It is designed to win the confidence of the audience by communicating in the common manner and style of the target audience. Propagandists use ordinary language and mannerisms (and clothe their message in face-to-face and audiovisual communications) in attempting to identify their point of view with that of the average person.

Cult of personality

A cult of personality arises when an individual uses mass media to create an idealized and heroic public image, often through unquestioning flattery and praise. The hero personality then advocates the positions that the propagandist desires to promote. For example, modern propagandists hire popular personalities to promote their ideas and/or products.

Demonizing the enemy

This type of propaganda involves defaming the enemy or opposition. Making individuals from the opposing nation, from a different ethnic group, or those who support the opposing viewpoint appear to be subhuman (e.g., the Vietnam War-era term "gooks" for National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam aka Vietcong, or "VC", soldiers), worthless, or immoral, through suggestion or false accusations. Dehumanizing is also a term used synonymously with demonizing, the latter usually serves as an aspect of the former.

Demoralization

Propaganda towards an adversary to erode fighting spirit, and encourage surrender or defection.

Dictat

This technique hopes to simplify the decision-making process by using images and words including interjection words to tell the audience exactly what actions to take, eliminating any other possible choices. Authority figures can be used to give the order, overlapping it with the appeal to authority technique, but not necessarily. The Uncle Sam "I want you" image is an example of this technique.

Disinformation

The changing or creation or deletion of information from public records, making a false record of an event or the actions of a person or organization, including outright forgery of photographs, motion pictures, broadcasts, and sound recordings as well as printed documents.

False accusations

A false accusation is a claim or allegation of wrongdoing that is untrue and/or otherwise unsupported by facts. They can be used in any of the following contexts: informally in everyday life, quasi-judicially, or judicially.

Fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD)

FUD an attempt to influence public perception by disseminating negative and dubious/false information designed to undermine the credibility of their beliefs.

Firehose of falsehood

A propaganda technique in which a large number of messages are broadcast rapidly, repetitively, and continuously over multiple channels (such as news and social media) without regard for truth or consistency.

Flag-waving

An attempt to justify an action on the grounds that doing so will make one more patriotic, or in some way benefit a group, country, or idea. In the feeling of patriotism, this technique attempts to inspire may not necessarily diminish or entirely omit one's capability for rational examination of the matter in question.

Flak

Flak means strong criticism. This technique of propaganda involves efforts to discredit organizations or individuals who disagree with or cast doubt on the prevailing assumptions.

Foot-in-the-door technique (FITD)

Often used by recruiters and salesmen to persuade potential customers to commit to a purchase. This technique is used in many ways and is a well-researched tactic for getting people to comply with requests. It is a strategy used to persuade people to agree to a particular action, based on the idea that if a respondent will comply with an small initial request then they will be more likely to agree to a later, more significant, request, which they would not have agreed to had they been asked it outright.

For example, the perpetrator walks up to the victim and pins a flower or gives a small gift to the victim. If the victim is happy with the small gift or appreciation, then the person eventually asks for a larger favour (e.g., a donation or to buy something far more expensive).

Latitudes of acceptance or rejection

According to social judgment theory, people have an internal reference scale for attitudes about important topics. The initial attitude on an issue with high ego-involvement influences the reaction to a communication representing a different view.

In social judgment theory, the latitude of acceptance is the range of positions that a person finds acceptable. The latitude of rejection is the range of positions that a person finds unacceptable or objectionable.

If a person's message is outside the bounds of acceptance for an individual and group, most techniques will engender psychological reactance (simply hearing the argument will make the message even less acceptable). There are two techniques for increasing the bounds of acceptance. First, one can take an even more extreme position that will make more moderate positions seem more acceptable. This is like the door-in-the-face technique. Alternatively, one can moderate one's own position to the edge of the latitude of acceptance and then over time slowly move to the position

Door-in-the-face technique

It is used to increase a person's latitude of acceptance and rejection. In contrast to the foot-in-the-door technique, which prefaces a request with a smaller request that the respondent is more likely to agree with, door-in-the-face requests involve asking a more demanding question, followed by the actual request.

For example, promoting higher price and then giving discounts to show that the customer is getting benefit.

Framing (social sciences)

Framing is a process of selective influence over the individual's perception of the meanings attributed to words or phrases. Framing is the social construction of a social phenomenon often by mass media sources, political or social movements, political leaders, or other actors and organizations.

In social theory, framing is a schema of interpretation, a collection of anecdotes and stereotypes, that individuals rely on to understand and respond to events. In other words, people build a series of mental "filters" through biological and cultural influences. They then use these filters to make sense of the world.

Gaslighting

Continuous denial, misdirection, contradiction, and lying to sow seeds of doubt in a target individual or group, hoping to make them question their own memory, perception, sanity, and norms.

Gish gallop

In Gish gallop technique, the opponent is bombarded with obnoxiously complex questions in rapid fire during a debate to create a confusion to make the opponent appear to not know what they are talking about.

Glittering generalities

Also known as PT Barnum effect or Forer effect), includes emotionally appealing words are applied to a product or idea, but without any concrete argument or analysis. (e.g., the advertising campaign slogan "Musk has a better idea!"). Here is a better example, the phrase "At times you feel very sure of yourself, while at other times you are not as confident" can apply to almost anyone, and thus each person can read a "personal" meaning into it.

Guilt by association or Reductio ad Hitlerum

Guilt by association is a fallacy that involves shifting the wrongdoings of a supporter onto the idea itself and sometimes onto other supporters. For example, if two friends get caught cheating on a test, people may assume that the third friend also cheated because they are friends with the other two.

This technique is used to persuade a target audience to disapprove of an action or idea by suggesting that the idea is popular with groups hated, feared, or held in contempt by the target audience. Thus if a group that supports a certain policy is led to believe that undesirable, subversive, or contemptible people support the same policy, then the members of the group may decide to change their original position. This is a form of bad logic, where A is said to include X, and B is said to include X, therefore, A = B. 1937 billboard promoting the glittering generality of the American way.

Half-truth

A half-truth is a deceptive statement that is either partly true or entirely true, but only part of the whole truth, utilizing some deceptive element, such as improper punctuation, or double meaning, especially if the intent is to deceive, evade, blame, or misrepresent the truth.

The purpose of a half-truth is to present a speaker or argument in a flattering way. This can mean evading blame, inflating importance or power, or projecting confidence.

Information overload

Information overload is when someone is presented with more communication inputs than they can process or use. It can also be called infobesity, infoxication, information anxiety, and information explosion. Examples,

Having to use multiple channels for different purposes
Trying to read a book while listening to music and watching TV
Receiving too many messages from different sources

When information overload occurs, it is likely that a reduction in decision quality will occur. The glut of information generated by modern technology threatens to make its receivers passive. Overload prompts disengagement.

Intentional vagueness

Saying something so vague as to be meaningless or open to multiple interpretations. This can leave others stymied, trying to figure out what was meant. In so doing, the vagueness distracts attention from legitimate concerns or questions.

Labelling

Labelling propaganda is a technique that involves assigning names and beliefs to a person or group in a simple category. The goal is to create negative associations in the audience's mind.

A euphemism is used when the propagandist attempts to increase the perceived quality, credibility, or credence of a particular ideal. A dysphemism is used when the intent of the propagandist is to discredit, diminish the perceived quality, or hurt the perceived righteousness of the individual. By creating a "label", "category", or "faction" of a population, it is much easier to make an example of these larger bodies, because they can uplift or defame the individual without actually incurring legal-defamation. labelling can be thought of as a sub-set of guilt by association, another logical fallacy.

Limited hangout

A technique used by clandestine professionals. "Limited hangout" is intelligence jargon for a form of propaganda in which a selected portion of a scandal, criminal act, sensitive or classified information, etc. is revealed or leaked, without telling the whole story. The intention may be to establish credibility as a critic of something or somebody by engaging in criticism of them while in fact covering up for them by omitting many details; to distance oneself publicly from something using innocuous or vague criticism even when one's own sympathies are privately with them; or to divert public attention away from a more heinous act by leaking information about something less heinous.

Loaded language

In loaded language propaganda, specific words and effective phrases with strong emotional implications are used to influence the audience, for example, using the word reforms rather than a more neutral word like changes.

Love bombing

Love bombing technique of propaganda is used to recruit members to a cult or ideology by having a group of individuals cut off a person from their existing social support and replace it entirely with members of the group who deliberately bombard the person with affection to isolate the person from their prior beliefs and value system.

Milieu control

An attempt to control the social environment and ideas through the use of social pressure

Milieu control is a term popularized by psychiatrist Robert Jay Lifton to describe tactics that control environment and human communication using social pressure and group language; such tactics may include dogma, protocols, innuendo, slang, and pronunciation, which enables group members to identify other members, or to promote cognitive changes in individuals. Lifton originally used "milieu control" to describe brainwashing and mind control, but the term has since been applied to other contexts too.

Lying and deception

Lying and deception can be the basis of many propaganda techniques including Ad Hominem arguments, Big-Lie, Defamation, Door-in-the-Face, Half-truth, Name-calling, or any other technique that is based on dishonesty or deception. For example, many politicians have been found to frequently stretch or break the truth.

Managing the news

Propaganda, misinformation, and fake news have the potential to polarise public opinion, to promote violent extremism and hate speech and, ultimately, to undermine democracies and reduce trust in the democratic processes.

Name-calling

Propagandists use the name-calling technique to incite fears and arouse prejudices in their hearers in the intent that the bad names will cause hearers to construct a negative opinion about a group or set of beliefs or ideas that the propagandist wants hearers to denounce. The method is intended to provoke conclusions about a matter apart from impartial examinations of facts. Name-calling is thus a substitute for rational, fact-based arguments against an idea or belief on its own merits.

Non sequitur

Non-sequitur technique pf propaganda is a type of logical fallacy, in which a conclusion is made from an argument that does not justify it. In this technique of propaganda, all invalid arguments are considered as special cases of non sequitur. Generalities are deliberately vague so that the audience may supply its own interpretations. Non sequiturs are often found in advertising. For example, Axe Body Spray commercials claim that women will be attracted to someone who wears the spray.

Obfuscation, intentional vagueness, confusion

Obfuscation is a rhetorical tool that involves intentionally using unclear or ambiguous language to obscure the intended meaning of communication. It can be used to confuse, distract, or perplex readers, and to feign concern for an issue. It may involve,

Strategic manipulation of information, language, or visual cues
Using jargon to confuse, bewilder, and stupefy audiences
Creating vague and unclear writing that clouds straightforward issues

Operant conditioning

Operant conditioning involves using rewards and punishment to modify behavior. Behavior that is rewarded is likely to be repeated, while behavior that is punished is likely to happen less. Here are a few examples,

Offering praise when someone does something positive
Providing immediate responses to employee behaviors
Giving someone a piece of candy when they clean their room

There are a few limitations to the use of Operant conditioning:

It is a simple process that cannot be used to teach complex concepts
It does not work for everyone

Oversimplification

Favourable generalities are used to provide simple answers to complex social, political, economic, or military problems.

Paltering

Paltering is the active use of selective truthful statements to mislead.

Pensée unique

Enforced reduction of discussion by use of overly simplistic phrases or arguments. One example of pensée unique given by critics was the motto of Margaret Thatcher (former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom): TINA ("There is no alternative")

Quotes out of context

Selective editing of quotes that can change meanings. This involves presenting a fact without any proof. For example,

Political documentaries designed to discredit an opponent or an opposing political viewpoint often use this technique.

"This is the best cavity-fighting toothpaste out there"

Rationalization

Rationalization is a propaganda tactic that uses psychological defence to justify difficult or unacceptable feelings. Individuals or groups may use favourable generalities to rationalize questionable acts or beliefs. Vague and pleasant phrases are often used to justify such actions or beliefs.

It can be used to prove that a person's or country's actions are the only correct ones, and therefore shouldn't be questioned or criticized. Examples,

A student who is rejected from his dream college may explain that he is happy to be attending a school that's less competitive and more welcoming.

A person evades paying taxes and then rationalizes it by talking about how the government wastes money.

A man buys an expensive car and then tells people his old car was very unreliable, very unsafe, etc.

Red herring

A red herring is a rhetorical device and fallacy that involves diverting attention from the main issue by focusing on a related issue. Presenting data or issues that, while compelling, are irrelevant to the argument at hand, and then claiming that it validates the argument.Red herrings are often used in movies, television, and literature. For example, in a mystery novel, a suspicious character may be presented as a red herring to distract the reader from the true culprit. Examples,

A police officer pulls a car over for speeding. The driver complains that they shouldn't pay a fine because there are worse criminals out there.

A son says, "Wow, Dad, it's really hard to make a living on my salary". The father responds, "Consider yourself lucky, son".

In an argument, one person says, "You always leave your stuff all over the room, you don't lock the door behind you, and the trash is piling up".

William Cobbett (1807) wrote, how he used red herrings to lay a false trail, while training hunting dogs—an apocryphal story that was probably the origin of the idiom.

Red herrings are considered a fallacy in debates because they do not engage with the main issue.

Repetition

In this technique of propaganda something is repeated several times. A certain symbol or slogan may be repeated so that the audience remembers it. This could be in the form of a jingle or an image placed on nearly everything in the picture/scene. This also includes using subliminal phrases, images, or other content in a piece of propaganda. This technique is more effective when the propagandist has control over the media

Scapegoating

Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals (e.g. "he did it, not me!"), individuals against groups (e.g., "I couldn't see anything because of all the tall people"), groups against individuals (e.g., "He was the reason our team didn't win"), and groups against groups.

Thus, scapegoating propaganda involves assigning blame to an individual or group, thus alleviating feelings of guilt from responsible parties and/or distracting attention from the need to fix the problem for which blame is being assigned. Example,

Nationalist slogan "Brazil, love it or leave it", often used during the Brazilian military dictatorship (1964–1985)

Semantic Satiation

Semantic satiation is a phenomenon whereby the uninterrupted repetition of a word eventually leads to a sense that the word has lost its meaning. This effect is also known as semantic saturation or verbal satiation.

For instance, writing teachers will often insist that students use repeated words with care, not just because it demonstrates a better vocabulary and a more eloquent style, but to avoid the loss of significance. Overuse of "strong" words, such as words with intense connotations or profanity, can also fall victim to semantic satiation and lose their intensity.

Slogans

A slogan is a short, impactful phrase that may include labelling and stereotyping. Although slogans may be enlisted to support reasoned ideas, in practice they tend to act only as emotional appeals.

For instance, opponents of the US's invasion and occupation of Iraq use the slogan "blood for oil" to suggest that the invasion and its human losses was done to access Iraq's oil riches. On the other hand, supporters who argue that the US should continue to fight in Iraq use the slogan "cut and run" to suggest withdrawal is cowardly or weak. Similarly, the names of the military campaigns, such as "enduring freedom" or "just cause" can also be considered slogans, devised to influence people.

Smears

A smear is an effort to damage or call into question someone's reputation, by propounding negative propaganda. It can be applied to individuals or groups un business or politics.

Stereotyping, name calling or labeling

The stereotyping propaganda technique attempts to arouse prejudices in an audience by labelling the object of the propaganda campaign as something the target audience fears, hates, loathes, or finds undesirable.

For instance, in war posters, depicting enemies with stereotyped racial features.

Straw man

A straw man argument is an informal fallacy based on misrepresentation of an opponent's position. To "attack a straw man" is to create the illusion of having refuted a proposition by substituting a superficially similar proposition (the "straw man"), and refuting it, without ever having actually refuted the original position.

A straw man argument is when someone sets up and then disputes an assertion that is not actually being made. For example, if someone says they love the color blue and someone else argues that red is better, asserting that the first person obviously hates the color red, this would be a straw man argument.