March 16-17

"We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

--Martin Luther King, Jr.; image from

VIDEOS

Top 8 Army Propaganda Videos - mobmag.in

FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Opinion space 2.0: "The U.S. Department of State is interested in your perspectives and input on a series of important foreign policy questions. 'Opinion Space' is a new discussion forum designed to engage participants from around the world. Every participant chooses a 'point of view' on a global opinion map. Your position is not based on geography or predetermined categories, but on similarity of opinion: those who agree on basic issues are neighbors, those who are far apart have agreed to disagree. You can instantly see where you stand in relation to other participants; by reviewing their comments, you help the community highlight the most insightful ideas."

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

US Public Diplomacy Strategy revealed but disappoints – Emrys, Communicare:

"US Public Diplomacy Strategy revealed, but charged that its not open, dynamic or flexible enough. Commentators note the irony of a strategy that is intended to engage with a new communications environment only being discussed with key bloggers in last minute meetings. But can any institutional strategy that has such institutional control ever be flexible and dynamic?" Image from

Comments on the new public diplomacy framework - Matt Armstrong, Mountainrunner.us: "Have you read the comments on the State Department’s new 'framework' for public diplomacy? Check them out if you haven’t and add your own thoughts. My thoughts will go up soon following the enlightening conversations I’ve had with folks within 'R'."

POMED Notes: “Talking About Tehran: Can Better Strategic Communications Help the U.S. In Iran?” – Josh, Project on Middle East Democracy -- The POMED Wire: "The New America Foundation hosted an event to explore the value of strategic communications and whether or not the United States should apply various types of public diplomacy as part of the overall strategy toward Iran. Steve Clemons, Director of the American Strategy Program at New American, moderated a discussion featuring James Glassman, Director of the George W. Bush Institute and former Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. Glassman opened by observing that public diplomacy and strategic communications are not being fully exploited as tools of foreign policy by the current administration. ... Public diplomacy, he said, is a means not an end – it is a particular set of tools to influence foreigners to help the U.S. achieve specific goals.

Expounding upon this, he described the theory of strategic communications as the use of the entire government apparatus to send signals that can have a powerful influence on foreign publics, and in turn governments. ... Glassman did praise Obama for the Voice Act that authorized $55 million for development of technologies that enhance the Iranian people’s ability to receive and send various types of content – but he expressed disappointment that only about half of the money was actually appropriated. ... Elaborating on various Internet tools, Glassman stressed that the U.S. needs to do more to facilitate consistent access to online tools such as Gmail and other popular networking sites. However, none of these policy proposals are meant to overthrow the [Iranian] regime, and Glassman emphasized that it’s up to the Iranians to determine the type of government they want – but these tools are simply intended to empower their voices. The U.S. government can do more to convene private organizations and provide them with seed money to perform various kinds of public diplomacy. 'Ultimately, the private sector tends to be very good at this kind of thing,' he said." Image: Former Think Tank Scholar and State Department Official James K. Glassman Named to Head Bush Institute (September 3, 2009)

Iran News Roundup March 16, 2010 - Critical Threats Project: "Kayhan editorializes: This Democrat [President Obama]...expressed himself with a softer tone of voice than the Republicans. Despite the smile on his lips and the hand of friendship he had extended, however, he started a new and more expansive phase of confrontation with Islamic Iran. Obama's new tactic to pursue the United States' hegemonic policies is a soft war with wider and more overt dimensions. In this tactic, public diplomacy is fundamental, and psychological operations and media messages try to target the minds of the elites and the masses..."

Heritage ideas to combat Russian anti-Americanism include budget increase, new bureaucracy (updated) - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting: "'The Kremlin is using anti-Americanism as a strategic tool for pursuing domestic and foreign policy goals. Through media controlled or owned by the state, the Russian government is deliberately spreading poisonous anti-U.S. propaganda at home and abroad, blaming many of Russia's problems on the West, particularly the United States. The partial success of this policy exposes a number of serious failures in U.S. public diplomacy, which has been in decline since the end of the Cold War. To counter Russian information warfare and to consolidate democracy and freedom in Eastern and Central Europe, the U.S. needs to reinvigorate its public diplomacy efforts, using both traditional TV and radio broadcasting and new media to reach the peoples of the former Soviet satellites and post-Soviet states.' Abstract from 'Russian Anti-Americanism: A Priority Target for U.S. Public Diplomacy,' Ariel Cohen and Helle C. Dale, Heritage Foundation, 24 February 2010. This is a detailed paper (with several footnotes) about an important subject. See my comments on this separate page.

Sergei S. in Moscow writes: 'I'm all for academic and culture exchange. But when it comes to mass media the authors seem to overestimate the power of propaganda (incl. 'public diplomacy') and underestimate the attraction of non-ideological, truth-seeking reporting. The paper says that 'RT regularly features Kremlin-supported commentators.' As RT's occasional viewer I know that it draws on a diverse pool of experts and personalities, incl. Dr. Ariel Cohen himself. This is one of his latest appearances on RT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbBoT7qfRvs. Update: 'Russian Anti-Americanism: A Priority Target for U.S. Public Diplomacy' will take place 23 March at 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Heritage Foundation's Lehrman Auditorium in Washington. Speakers are Daniel Kimmage (senior fellow), Svetlana Babaeva (RIA Novosti), and Ariel Cohen (senior research fellow), with Helle Dale as host. Heritage announcement." Image from

EU Foreign Policymaking Post-Lisbon: Confused and Contrived - Sally McNamara, Heritage.org: "The European Union finally succeeded in ramming through introduction of the Lisbon Treaty in December 2009. The treaty was touted by the powers in Brussels as the vehicle that would create the long-awaited 'single phone line' to Europe. Lisbon was to streamline the gargantuan EU bureaucracy and make communication between the two sides of the Atlantic smooth and tidy. Instead, the mess is worse than before, with five EU 'presidents' tripping over each other and confusing Washington with ill-defined, overlapping, and flat-out confusing roles and foreign policy objectives. ... Congress should hold further hearings to analyze the implications of the Lisbon Treaty for the transatlantic alliance, especially the implications for foreign policy and alliance-building. The U.S. Congress--both the House and Senate--should seek expert analysis on the new defense and security provisions of the treaty. Congress and the Administration should continue to make the building of enduring bilateral alliances a top U.S. foreign policy priority by extending the visa waiver program, re-energizing public diplomacy instruments, and encouraging multinational defense projects with trusted allies such as the U.K."

The American Nation is Greater than the American Government – John Matel, World-Wide-Matel:

"The essence of the so-called soft power is that it is dispersed and not always exercised by the same people who possess the hard power. One reason why American cultural products are so influential is that they are not produced by the American government. People trust that they are not propaganda or even attempts at honest messaging. The close embrace of government, even when it is loving, is not always healthy for artists and writers and it can be downright suffocating for entrepreneurs. Governments work best as consumers of their products, not co-creators. It is great for public diplomats to be able to 'represent' the phenomenal vitality of the American nation. However, the scope for overlap and cooperation may be very broad, but it should not very deep. Public diplomacy professionals should certainly be consumers and enthusiasts of the best our country offers. That doesn’t mean that we can or should work in close partnership to guide or be guided by particular individuals or groups over the long term. Being broadly representative of America is what public diplomacy officers do best and what we should continue to do, but we need to recall that we work for the government, which is only a part of the nation, and there are not very many of us." Image from

The Doorknob - Peter Hessler, New Yorker:

Commentary on Nicholas Kristof's article in New York Times article, “Teach for the World,” in which Kristof stated that "[i]n my mind, Teach for the World would be a one-year program placing young Americans in schools in developing countries. The Americans might teach English or computer skills, or coach basketball or debate teams. The program would be open to Americans 18 and over…. The host country would provide room and board through a host family. To hold down costs, the Americans would be unpaid and receive only airplane tickets, a local cellphone and a tiny stipend to cover bus fares and anti-malaria bed nets. This would be a government-financed effort to supplement an American public diplomacy outreach that has been eviscerated over the last few decades." Hessler article mentions that "[b]y then, John Brown, a former Foreign Service officer who teaches at Georgetown, had weighed in with his own opinions about the Peace Corps" in the Huffington Post. Image from

RFE/RL loses its radio and television outlets in Kyrgyzstan (updated: BBC, too, maybe) - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Bridge Over the Visa Moat for Musicians Trying to Enter the U.S. - Ben Sisario, New York Times: "Of the 2,000 bands at the annual South by Southwest Music and Media Conference this week in Austin, Tex., more than 500 are from outside the United States. And to help make their way through the byzantine process of obtaining an American visa, about 200 of them have sent their paperwork, their prayers and $600 to one tiny office on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The office, three flights up in a tenement building with no buzzer, is the headquarters of Tamizdat, a nonprofit group with an official mission of promoting international cultural exchange, and a docket each year of hundreds of visa applications that need I’s precisely dotted and T’s precisely crossed. Its clients include classical, ethnic and pop musicians from around the world, but come March, the Tamizdat office is a bottleneck for bands on their way to Austin." Courtesy LB

Christians Stand with Israel as Obama Administration Steps up Criticism - Erick Stakelbeck,
Christian Broadcasting Network:

"Christians United for Israel (CUFI) is calling on its supporters to e-mail the White House and urge the President to end the current diplomatic crisis with Israel. The effort has gathered momentum throughout the day, CUFI spokesman Ari Morgenstern tells CBN News: ... Israel's Minister of Public Diplomacy, Yuli Edelstein ... playing a key role in helping the Netanyahu government fight back against Israel’s detractors. It is an important position that he is uniquely equipped for: he spent three years in a Soviet prison camp in Siberia for the 'crime' of teaching Hebrew language and culture to Soviet Jews." Image from

Israel Fights Back Against Critics - Erick Stakelbeck, Christian Broadcasting Network: "During the past 65 years, the UN has issued more declarations against Israel than all other member nations combined. The latest is known as the Goldstone Report, which accuses the Israeli army of committing war crimes during last year's operation in Gaza against the terrorist group Hamas. ... 'No one ever committed war crimes,' Israeli cabinet minister Yuli Edelstein told CBN News. 'There was no use of excessive force.' Edelstein serves as Minister of Public Diplomacy in the Netanyahu government. It is an increasingly important position: studies show that violence against Jews is on the rise around the world, including in democracies like France and Great Britain. Edelstein is taking the lead in helping Israel fight back against those detractors."

Israel Research Center: UN Goldstone Report Ignored Facts - Joel Leyden, Israel News Agency:

"According to a news report in today’s Jerusalem Post by Military Correspondent Ya’akov Katz, a 500-page report authored by the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center (Malam) is the first, objective Israel response to the UN Goldstone Report, analyzing it piece-by-piece and explaining the true nature of the conflict against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. ... [According to Katz,] ‘The radio has been full of ads from Israel Public Diplomacy Minister Yuli Edelstein’s new PR campaign to get Israelis, during their travels abroad, to explain that they don’t ride on camels or eat only barbecued foods.’ ‘Instead of wasting Israel taxpayer’s money, Edelstein’s budget should have gone to establishing an official Israel crisis communications response team that would be responsible for writing such reports and disseminating them to the media, not a year after the operation but as the fighting is going on,’ the IDF Gaza Hamas Report from the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center (Malam) states.” Image from

Israel admits it has an image problem - Jonathan Cook, The National: "A new government campaign to train Israelis in how to use propoganda in order to improve their country’s image when they are abroad has been condemned for advancing a right-wing agenda. The public relations drive, which includes giving travellers tips on how to champion the country’s illegal settlements, is the government’s latest attempt to shore up support abroad following the harsh criticisms of Israel’s attack on Gaza last year made by the UN-commissioned Goldstone Report, which produced evidence of war crimes. According to a recent government survey, 91 per cent of Israeli Jews believe foreigners have a strongly negative view of Israel. Nearly as many – 85 per cent – say they would be willing to use holidays or business trips to engage in hasbara, Hebrew for 'public advocacy' or 'propaganda'. Critics, however, have accused Yuli Edelstein, who is in charge of the recently created hasbara ministry, of exploiting the campaign to promote not just Israel’s technological and cultural successes but also its hawkish agenda."

2010-03-16 two hot-words - Sohu blog "Peach Blossom pig's colorful life of" log "translation & interpretation [Google translation]:

"Public diplomacy in this country 'two sessions' has caused hot discussion, CPPCC Chairman Jia Qinglin of the CPPCC work of the two mentioned in the report on public diplomacy. A spokesman for Mr. Zhao Qizheng the CPPCC National Committee that China must vigorously carry out public diplomacy. See 'China Daily' reported: China needs a bigger public diplomacy campaign to better present the country to the world, said Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), on Monday. China needs a bigger public diplomacy campaign to better present the country to the world, said Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), on Monday. Zhao week, a spokesman for the CPPCC National Committee, said China needs to vigorously carry out public diplomacy activities to better introduce China to the world. public diplomacy. ... Public diplomacy is a government of foreign citizens form of diplomacy, and its activities, including through cultural exchange programs, international broadcasting and the Internet, the main forms of expression, information and language. ... Diplomacy cannot only said that 'diplomacy' can also mean ' (dealing with interpersonal relationships, etc.) wrist, means, smooth, tactfully, decent.' ... For example: He exhibited remarkable diplomacy by not pointing out her mistakes. (He did not point out her shortcomings, has become very smooth.)" Original text at; image from

News Analysis: The Use and Abuse of Confucius by Today's China: Confucius Institutes help develop the regime’s ‘soft power’ - Michael Young, The Epoch Times: "In 2004, the Chinese Communist leadership decided that they would make a coordinated effort to set up classrooms and institutes around the world to teach Chinese in the simplified form, along with the Party's version of Chinese culture, under the name of Confucius. Twelve Chinese state departments and committees have participated in the formation of Confucius Institute Headquarters, which is also called the Chinese Languages Council International. ... Strength is what is behind the CCP’s turn to Confucius. In the last 20 years, the CCP has been looking to expand its influence by developing so-called soft power, in addition to its economic and military build up. The CCP has been looking for every opportunity to implement its so-called 'da wei jiao' and 'da wei xun'—'greater diplomacy' and 'greater international propaganda.' The essence of greater diplomacy is to unite everyone in the world in order to benefit the CCP’s strategic goals. This tactic is also called establishing the most extensive 'tong yi zhan xian'—the united front—one of the three treasures that has brought and kept the CCP in power. The essence of the greater international propaganda is to influence public opinion and governments’ judgments regarding relationships with the CCP. In particular, the greater international propaganda seeks to convince people that Communist China is a benign partner rather than a hidden threat."

1 day ago - Translated Japan News:

"• Actively considering the first meeting for strengthening public diplomacy to save the document • Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 16 to review the nature of the document with the active document for public diplomacy, 'the document management task force records public diplomacy' (Katsuya Okada, head of foreign ministers) held the first meeting. The Expert Committee examined a secret pact, the United States will improve its focus and save the public from the premises and pointed out the possibility that intentionally destroyed relevant documents." Image from

Embassy Roadshow takes Aussie films to 20+ countries - Encore: "Mini-Australian Film Festivals have recently taken place in countries as diverse as Nepal, Malaysia and Ghana, as part of the Screen Australia/Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Embassy Roadshow program. ... The festivals are paid for by DFTA's fund for public diplomacy briefings, events and initatives to advance Australia's foreign and trade policy interests and to promote a positive and contemporary image of the country. They can also find private sponsorship."

Constitutional Problems Of International Organisations - Ong'anya, International Relations: "The United Nations has various modes of dealing with international crisis.

The public diplomacy by the Security Council and the General Assembly have assisted quite a lot, as the blue berets and the blue helmets may be acknowledged. In supplementing this, private diplomacy by the Secretary General's 'good offices' has also worked. This is preferred due to its confidential nature, impartiality and confidence building." Image from

Science Museum launches DigiFest - Patrick Goss,TechRadar UK: "The Science Museum in London has announced DigiFest – a series of interactive evening events to discuss the issues facing our techno-enhanced society. ... 'DigiFest brings together a series of interactive evening events that tackle the biggest issues facing our techno-enhanced society, from changes in our brains to changes in public diplomacy, from tech that breaks down privacy to the tech you just can't live without,' says [a] Science Museum's [press] release."

Baby elephants and lese majeste - Nicholas Farrelly, New Mandala -- New perspectives on mainland Southeast Asia: "Andrew and I launched a campaign to have a new baby elephant at Taronga Zoo in Sydney named 'Suwicha' (สุวิชา) in honour of lese majeste prisoner, Suwicha Thakor.

That campaign was unsuccessful, although we hope it generated some more awareness of Suwicha’s predicament. ... Instead of the open-ended and relatively democratic competition for 'Suwicha' (who was eventually given the banal moniker of 'Luuk chai'), the new elephant will be named from one of the seven names on the following short-list. None of the options are particularly imaginative:
Name 1: Pathi Harn – meaning miracle
Name 2: Tay Wan – meaning boy in heaven
Name 3: Ming Khwan – meaning good internal strength, good attitude
Name 4: Nam Chok – meaning brings with him good fortune
Name 5: Mongkon – meaning auspicious
Name 6: Boon Thung – meaning merit has lead to reaching this life
Name 7: Chok Dee – meaning very good luck
Suwicha, and others, are still locked up in Thailand. And, somewhat disappointingly, the short-list format of this elephant naming competition will stifle any further effort to invert the public diplomacy of zoo 'exchanges' to draw attention to the injustices that come with the enforcement of Thailand’s lese majeste law." Image from

Public diplomacy in contemporary world politics – Mario, The New Diplomacy 2010 F -- A Reflective Group Blog by Some of the Students on the New Diplomacy Module At London Metropolitan University: "Public Diplomacy in a contrast to 'traditional' diplomacy is about communication with citizens. Public Diplomacy includes dialogue between individuals and various institutions including non-governmental as is often referred as a 'two-way street' for credentials of the dialogue."

What is the difference between a policy of diplomacy and public diplomacy? - Politics: "I am interested in the diplomatic service,

and I wonder what is the difference between political diplomacy (AKA Political Science), and public diplomacy. I want to be a Foreign Service Officer (FSO) working in other countries and negotiations with other countries. Is this a political or public? I suspect the political." Image from

Economist to discuss ways to reduce poverty at Baker Institute lecture - press release, Article Ant: "M. Sophia Aguirre, associate professor of economics at The Catholic University of America, will speak on 'Family Well-being and Poverty Eradication' March 17 at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. ... A presidential appointee to the U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, Aguirre has also held appointments at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University and has visited the Instituto de Altos Estudios Empresariales at the University of Austral in Argentina."

Public Diplomacy - Juliannamay, Wish You Were Here: "Lately, I've been trying to keep my mouth shut when faced with confrontation. As many of you know, this isn't easy for me. I might even say that I have some anger management problems, and generally have no hesitations in telling a person who has crossed the line off.

However, as a Fulbright, I personally have decided to represent my country the best I can and accordingly, behave as diplomatically as possible. So I haven't told anyone off really since I've moved to NZ. There have been a few times when I really would have loved to say something (like to CF), but kept my lips sealed." Image from article

RELATED ITEMS

Allies everywhere feeling snubbed by President Obama - Robert Kagan, Washington Post: The contretemps between President Obama and Israel needs to be seen in a broader global context. The president who ran against "unilateralism" in the 2008 campaign has worse relations overall with American allies than George W. Bush did in his second term.

The Real Terror War Is On the Internet: Terrorist Internet sites are not only yelling fire in a crowded movie theatre, they are providing the match, the gasoline, and the arsonist - Mark Dubowitz,FOXNews.com:

Terrorists and rogue states are moving their battle to the Internet in a virtual war against liberal democracy. For too long, the United States and its allies have ignored the incitement and violent propaganda from Internet platforms operated by violent Islamist extremists. Today, such neglect is not an option. As we have been warned by Harry Wingo -- a former Navy SEAL who now serves as Google's Washington, D.C. policy counsel-- "the code is mightier than the sword." Internet code is an operational weapon used by terrorist groups to indoctrinate, recruit, train, and finance the next generation of terrorists. Image from

Homegrown Terrorism Reflects the Changing Tactics of Al-Qaeda - Joshua Philipp, The Epoch Times: A method al-Qaeda uses is finding Islamic groups that hold “concepts of victimization, concepts of Muslims being persecuted by the non-Muslim West, imperialists, colonialists,” said Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser, president and founder of American Islamic Forum for Democracy. Al-Qaeda then “piggy backs” on the propaganda to recruit from these groups that “travel with similar ideologies and yet may be nonviolent,” he said. Terrorist recruitment videos, often released online, have been tailored to appeal to various audiences. A propaganda video, which can still be watched on YouTube of captured U.S. soldier, Bowe R. Bergdahl, compares what seems to be his good treatment under al-Qaeda, to those of U.S.-run prisoner of war camps.

EU money spent on skiing trips and 'TV propaganda' - Martin Banks, Telegraph.co.uk:

In a report, MEPs raised questions about the assembly budget, including concerns about a £72,000 fund for parliament staff which was used to pay for a trip to the Italian Alps for the children of MEPs and officials. It also attacked the annual £8 million budget for EuroparlTV, Parliament's own dedicated online TV channel. It broadcasts live Parliamentary events, including plenary and committee meetings but has been condemned by some MEPs as "glorified propaganda." Image from

North Korea’s Comic Propaganda - Geoffrey Cain, The Diplomat: For decades, world leaders have accused the communist regime of North Korea of running drugs, defrauding insurance companies and counterfeiting US dollars. It’s also one of the few governments in the world that is known to so openly sponsor mafia-like operations. But beneath Kim Jong-il’s sinister regime of Mafiosos, the Dear Leader has a heartier side: he sells comic books and animation to raise government funds—and to brainwash the masses.

Every year, a state-owned publishing house releases several cartoons (called geurim-chaek in North Korea), many of which are smuggled across the Chinese border and, sometimes, mysteriously end up in university libraries in the United States. The books are designed to instill the Juche philosophy of Kim Il-sung (the ‘father’ of North Korea)—radical self-reliance of the state. The plots brim with propaganda, featuring scheming capitalists from the United States and Japan who create dilemmas for naïve North Korean characters. Image from article

Exhibit A of a Terrible Propaganda Campaign - Matthew Collin, Moscow Times: A television report about a new Russian invasion broadcast earlier that evening in Tiblisi wasn’t real but a simulation intended to warn that the Kremlin was capable of launching an offensive to seize Georgia. Some are also convinced that because the television station that aired the report is run by an ally of President Mikheil Saakashvili, it must have been sanctioned by the Georgian leadership. Saakashvili has strongly denied this, even saying his own grandmother was distressed by the broadcast. But his detractors continue to believe that it was a bungled, poorly thought-out attempt at political propaganda, intended to scare people into rallying around their government, which backfired in spectacular fashion.

Difficult Task Defining Bandera’s Historic Role- Alexander J. Motyl, Moscow Times:

Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko’s decision to confer the title of Hero of Ukraine on nationalist leader Stepan Bandera on Jan. 22 has unleashed a storm of outrage inside and outside Ukraine. Critics accuse Yushchenko of whitewashing a Nazi-era fascist and betraying the ideals of the Orange Revolution that brought him to power. Some hint darkly at a resurgence of fascism in Ukraine. Soviet propaganda always demonized the nationalists — not for their violations of human rights, of course, but because of their unconditional opposition to Stalinist rule. Bandera image from article

Russian propaganda blackens Latvia's name - Baltic Review

Soviets sneak back in - Alana Ahmedabad, Curry Toes: The University of Chicago Presents (UCP) is partnering with 10 of Chicago's prominent arts institutions in presenting one of the largest collaborative artistic efforts across the city since Silk Road Chicago in 2006/07. The Soviet Experience, a 14-month-long showcase of works by artists who created under (and in response to) the Politburo of the Soviet Union, will officially kick-off this October and run through the end of 2011. These exciting events will take festival-goers behind the Iron Curtain to explore its essence through the creative work of its visual artists, choreographers, composers, and dramatists. - The Art Institute of Chicago will exhibit striking War-time propaganda posters not seen in the United States since World War II. - The Block Museum of Art, Smart Museum of Art, and the Special Collections Research Center at The University of Chicago Library will exhibit special collections of iconic Soviet propaganda imagery, book art, children’s books, posters, cartoons and more.

Propaganda Posters - a Perfect Gift for History Enthusiasts - corporategift.org.nz: Propaganda posters are a great gift idea for someone who is interested in history. They make for unique gifts and are an integral part of history. Propaganda posters played a vital role in both the World Wars. All governments in World War I used posters as propaganda.

They did this to justify their involvement in the war and also to get more money, men and resources to continue fighting. In most European countries like Italy, France, Germany and Britain, posters were used the whole duration of the war. In Britain, though the posters were well received, they did not get the required number of volunteers to fight in the frontlines. They ultimately had to introduce conscription to get men to fight. Apart from recruitment, WWI propaganda posters also encouraged the people to conserve food and energy. They acted as advertisements for people to invest in war time bonds, which most people did. An interesting fact is that, though the US joined the First World War in 1917, it produced more posters than any other country. World War II also saw an extensive use of posters. WWII propaganda posters were slightly different than the previous war. Apart from advertising for recruitment to the armed forces and investment in war bonds, they also talked about other topics. Some posters created controversy. Mostly posters were used for messages pertaining to national security, salvage, the Red Cross, things that could be sent to soldiers fighting overseas, relief efforts and food production. Image from