Edward Bernays’ ‘Propaganda’ Dissected

Edward Bernays, born in Vienna in 1891 and famously the nephew of Sigmund Freud, was perhaps the pioneer in the field of Public Relations, and highly influential in providing the framework for modern advertising. His work aimed to convince people to want things that they didn’t need, and in the process, link their unconscious desires to the consumption of mass produced goods. This in turn, it was theorized, could be used to control the masses, as by keeping them distracted on frivolous happenings and relatively unimportant wants, they wouldn’t interfere with the activities of what he called ‘the important few’.

All the while, he was remarkably candid about his intent. In one of his first books, ‘Propaganda’ (1928), he coined the term ‘engineering of consent’ to describe his technique for controlling the masses. In this podcast series, Guy Evans examines just how influential these ideas were, and details the resulting impact in relation to public relations, advertising, celebrity culture, and democracy itself.

PART 1 – “ORGANIZING CHAOS”

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-propaganda-1

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_60_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_1.mp3

PART 2 – “THE NEW PROPAGANDA”

In this episode, Chapter 2 is under the microscope, a chapter that further details the scientific underpinning that explains how the minority influence the majority.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/propaganda-book

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_63_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_2.mp3

PART 3 – “THE NEW PROPAGANDISTS”

“A presidential candidate may be ‘drafted’ in response to ‘overwhelming popular demand’, but it is well known that his name may be decided upon by half a dozen men sitting around a table in a hotel room.” – Edward Bernays

This week Guy Evans examines Chapter 3 of Edward Bernays’ seminal text ‘Propaganda’. In this chapter, ‘The New Propagandists’, Bernays characteristically boasts that the public are not aware of the ‘invisible rulers’ that control elected figureheads behind the scenes. He suggests that public opinion must be molded by the ‘intelligent few’, and argues that in many aspects of our daily lives, we are influenced by deceptive trend-setters that manipulate our desires and cause us to make uninformed, irrational choices.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-public-opinion

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_64_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_3.mp3

PART 4 – “THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PUBLIC RELATIONS”

“If we understand the mechanism and motives of the group mind, is it not possible to control and regiment the masses according to our will without their knowing it?” – Edward Bernays

In Part 4, Guy Evans examines how Bernays learned from his peers – Walter Lippmann, Gustave Le Bon, Graham Wallas, and Wilfred Trotter in particular, and subsequently advised governments to exclude their people from important affairs. Instead of encouraging active political participation, he adopted new theories on mass psychology that would reduce individuals to nothing more than consumers, never happy, and never satisfied.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-public-relations

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_67_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_4.mp3

PART 5 – “BUSINESS AND THE PUBLIC”

“If you turn on a television set, you see in one minute that the goal of advertising is to create uninformed consumers making irrational choices.” – Noam Chomsky

Chapter 5 features several recurring topics; notably, aspirational culture, the manufacture of new customers, and controlling the public mind. Guy Evans looks at each of these key themes, and with the help of Mad Men‘s Don Draper(!), investigates the strength of the emotional connection between ourselves and the products that we buy.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-advertising

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_70_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_5.mp3

PART 6 – “PROPAGANDA AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP”

What does it mean to be a leader? According to Edward Bernays, the ‘Father of Public Relations’, a leader is most effective when acting as a dictator. In this episode of the Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast, Guy Evans begins to break down Chapter 6 of Bernays’ magnum opus ‘Propaganda’ – revealing the author’s distorted view of leadership, and his widely shared belief that the public’s apathy results in their own oppression.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-public-relations-book

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_73_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_6.mp3

PART 7 – “PROPAGANDA AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP II”

Episode 76 of the Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast continues Guy Evans’ systematic examination of Edward Bernays’ seminal text, ‘Propaganda’. This week, he breaks down further Chapter 6, ‘Propaganda and Political Leadership’, which alludes to themes of personality, image, brand association, and the co-operation between the business and political worlds.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-politics

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_76_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_7.mp3

PART 8 – “PROPAGANDA AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP III”

In Part 8 of the series, Guy Evans finishes breaking down Chapter 6 (‘Propaganda and Political Leadership’) of Edward Bernays’ seminal text ‘Propaganda’. In a mammoth 93 minute edition of the show, find out how Bernays predicted that the politicians of the future would originate from the same social circles; discover how the techniques developed in his era to pique public interest in prominent personalities are still utilized today; and enjoy a special guest interview from Vasko Atanasoski of the Macedonian band ‘Bernays Propaganda’!

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/advertising-techniques-edward-bernays

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_79_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_8.mp3

PART 9 – “WOMEN’S ACTIVITIES AND PROPAGANDA”

There is perhaps no truer application of the adage ‘actions speak louder than words’ than in examining the life and work of ‘The Father of Public Relations’, Edward Bernays. While on one hand, Bernays seemingly supported women’s liberation, his advertising techniques contributed heavily to making smoking a socially viable and desirable activity for women.

Episode 81 of the Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast focuses on Chapter 7 (‘Women’s Activities and Propaganda’). Past attitudes to women’s smoking, Bernays’ influence, and the long-term effects of his strategies are all discussed; and in the end, you may see that the more that things have changed, the more that they have stayed the same.

BONUS: This show contains an interview with Dr. Jerry Kroth, Professor Emeritus at Santa Clara University, on the topic of propaganda techniques. Enjoy!

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-torches-of-freedom

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_81_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_9_-_Copy.mp3

PART 10 – “PROPAGANDA FOR EDUCATION”

In this show, the focus is placed specifically on Chapter 8 (‘Propaganda for Education’), which alludes to themes of standardized testing, the dichotomy between theoretical and practical knowledge, and the general limitations of Educational systems. Did Edward Bernays’ contempt for ‘ordinary’ people influence his views on Education? Find out in our latest episode!

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-on-education

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_83_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_10.mp3

PART 11 – “PROPAGANDA IN SOCIAL SERVICE”

This episode focuses on Chapter 9 of the book, ‘Propaganda and Social Service’, which further exposes Bernays’ determination that the wealthy should direct the priorities of a particular society.

BONUS: This episode also features an interview with the former Boston Globe journalist Larry Tye, author of ‘The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations’. Larry discusses meeting the man himself, what it was like to sift through his collection of things at the Library of Congress, and what he gleaned from talking to over 100 of his closest friends and relatives.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/larry-tye-on-edward-bernays

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/Smells_Like_Human_Spirit_Episode_87_-_Deconstructing_Edward_Bernays_Propaganda_Part_11.mp3

PART 12 – “ART AND SCIENCE”

Who decides what is and isn’t important? Who creates the demand for a particular product or service? What is the public’s role in this process? In Chapter 10 (‘Art and Science’) of Edward Bernays’ seminal text ‘Propaganda’, the “Father of PR’ outlines his contention that the mechanism of propaganda must be used to ‘accustom the public to change and progress.” In a short but insightful chapter, Bernays states that propaganda helps to establish what is beautiful, valuable, and desirable, specifically using the marketing of Art galleries as his example.

Although on the surface it may be ludicrous to suggest that contemporary art is a hoax, sold to us as being beautiful and revolutionary through the mechanism of propaganda, consider what our author Edward Bernays accomplished in terms of establishing the idea that the presence of a piano was essential in a modern home.

So what is art? Who defines it? Who controls it?

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-on-marketing

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/SLHS104.mp3

SPECIAL PODCAST: EDWARD BERNAYS’ DAUGHTER ANNE ON LIFE WITH THE ‘FATHER OF PR’

Anne Bernays is the daughter of the so-called ‘Father of Public Relations’, Edward Bernays. She is, in her own right, an accomplished novelist and teacher, currently on the faculty of Lesley University’s MFA program in writing. She joined Guy Evans for Episode 120 of the Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast to talk about life with the man she called ‘Eddie’; discussing his intense dedication to his work, his contradictory personality, and above all, his legacy. Enjoy!

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/who-is-edward-bernays

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/SLHS120.mp3

PART 13 (FINALE) – “THE MECHANICS OF PROPAGANDA”

“Propaganda will never die out. Intelligent men must realize that propaganda is the modern instrument by which they can fight for productive ends and help to bring order out of chaos.” – Edward L. Bernays

Guy Evans wraps up his series deconstructing the book ‘Propaganda’, authored by the ‘Father of Public Relations’ Edward Bernays. In the dramatic, perhaps prescient final paragraphs of the text, Bernays remained staunch in his belief that propaganda is necessary to quell the unconscious desires of the uninformed masses. In that sense, he echoed the sentiments of his famous uncle, Sigmund Freud, who suggested that human beings are in perpetual conflict due to the hidden inner forces that govern them.

Link to podcast, transcript, and resources: http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/edward-bernays-propaganda-13

Direct mp3 download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/smellslikepodcast/EdwardBernaysSLHS159.mp3

Smells Like Human Spirit is a DAILY podcast that covers society, culture, and everything in between! Previous guests include Professor Noam Chomsky, Dan Carlin, Michael Ruppert and many others…