Propaganda
Edward L. Bernays 1928
This nonfiction book explains how public relations shapes public opinion through organized campaigns. Its examples include soap-carving contests used to promote a soap brand.
116 pages 2h 15m reading time
- A founding book of modern public relations, written by one of the field's pioneers.
- Argues that in a mass democracy, a small group of experts must guide what the public thinks and wants, which the book calls "the conscious and intelligent manipulation" of public opinion.
- Presents shaping public opinion as a normal and necessary tool for business, government, and social causes, rather than something to hide or be ashamed of.
- Helped turn public relations into a recognized profession, and its methods became a model for modern advertising and political campaigns.
- Remains a key text for anyone studying media, marketing, and how ideas are sold to the public, and it is often read today as a warning about those same methods.
Born from wartime work
Bernays learned his methods promoting America's cause in World War I for the government's Committee on Public Information.
Defending a tainted word
He wrote partly to rescue the word "propaganda," which wartime lies had made sound dishonest.
Drew on his uncle
Bernays, Sigmund Freud's nephew, used ideas about hidden desires to explain how crowds could be moved.
Revived by television
Interest grew after the 2002 BBC series "The Century of the Self" featured Bernays, and a new edition followed.