Propaganda & Disinformation (Beginners)

This lecture will introduce some of the most important terms and concepts to define, understand and analyze propaganda. Read the first chapter of my book 'Propaganda and Counter-terrorism: Strategies for Global Change' (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2015) in the attached resources.

In this lecture you will learn more about how academics defined propaganda, how it can be applied to examples throughout history and understand a little about the ongoing contested and varied use of the term including key subcategories of propaganda which you can read more about in my attached book chapter. You should watch the video interview with me in 'External Resources' afterwards which considers the ethics of propaganda's practice in a contemporary world.

This is a bonus glossary you can refer to during the course.

After watching the video read the resources below.

Watch the video then read the ‘Open Culture’ resource.

Also read the short Prospect article/and or the Understanding Society blogpost - do you agree with the message? Can Arendt help us understand our society today?

Optional: if you find this interesting and want more advanced learning, you can listen to the Philosophy podcast, or just skip to the final section where the presenter talks about the Banality of Evil.

In this brief lecture you will learn about an example from the Soviet Union where state control and violence operated in tandem with propaganda.

Watch the lecture video then read the article in the external resources by Sirota and Warner and 'Experts Worry About Your Personal Data In The 2020 Election'.

After the reading make sure you play the game 'Bad News' - you will be quizzed on this too.

For a deeper understanding read the Harvard study on Money in Politics.

Watch the Lecture video about the Cambridge Analytica scandal to understand more about how data produced by your online behavior can be used by today's digital propagandists. Then watch the interview with Prof. Shoshana Zuboff via the attached external resource 'How surveillance capitalism is undermining democracy.'

This lecture will examine a range of possible solutions that are regularly proposed for responding to the problem of propaganda. These include governmental, systemic and infrastructure responses such as privacy and technology or media industry regulation; technology and Big Tech responses including content moderation; codes of ethics; and methods that aim to 'counter' propaganda or improve digital literacy and media literacy which are focused on equipping the public to see through strategies of manipulation. Educating your self about propaganda and disinformation with courses like this one means you already have taken a big step towards being an informed internet user.

After the lecture, read the Lobo article summarizing Shoshana Zuboff's testimony on responses to surveillance capitalism & my ‘Building a stronger and more secure democracy in a digital age’ within the external resources.

The rest of the readings are optional.

Recap and revise concepts you’ve learned then do the final review quiz!