By TLB Staff Writer: Zine Larbaoui
“Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it.”–Adolf Hitler
War Propaganda certainly does explain a lot of things that we can now see because we are right into the subject. To not believe everything and to be skeptical of all, may seem paranoid in nature and yet here we are … The information war for the support of the international community is not a concept, it is a reality.
It’s actually very informative, very rewarding even, to see that these techniques are used every day to make us swallow snakes better, for some of us to thoroughly take into account, before you even continue to watch the MSM news!
How did the Western media cover the various wars that followed the first Gulf War? Can we detect common denominators? Are there any applied fundamental rules with regard to “war propaganda”? Yes.
1. Hide interests.
Our governments are fighting for human rights, “democracy,”peace or some other noble ideal. Never present the war as a conflict between economic and opposed social interests. The most basic rule of war propaganda is to hide the fact that these wars are fought for specific economic interests, those of multinational corporations. Whether for control over strategic raw materials or oil and gas routes, whether to open markets and break the will of too independent States or whether to destroy any country that may endorse an alternative system to the established world order, wars are always ultimately economically motivated, never humanitarian. Yet each time, the humanitarian narrative is told to the public. “No nation has friends, only interests.” – Charles de Gaulle
2. Demonize.
To secure the support of public opinion, prepare every war by organizing a large spectacular media lie blitz. Then continue to demonize the adversary, showing, particularly, images of atrocities. Every major war begins with a large media lie campaign on the controlled media that serves to tilt the public view so that it stands behind its leaders. Media content like horrific pictures showing that the opponent is a monster and we must intervene for “humanitarian or democratic reasons.” For such media lie to work well, several conditions are necessary, notably the incessant broadcast of appalling images, rigged if necessary, the constant hammering which lasts for several days and then extended by frequent reminders, monopolize the media, exclude the version of the other camp, denounce the critics as appeasers or subversive elements, even describe them as “accomplices” or even “revisionists” for questioning the official media line. “Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.” – George W. Bush
3. No History!
Hide the history and the past geographical delineations of the region, whatever fueled local conflicts or caused by the great powers themselves incomprehensible to the public. In every major conflict, the Western media have concealed the opinions of essential historical and geographical data which helps to understand the situation of the relevant strategic areas in question. The rule is simple. Hiding the past can prevent the public from understanding the history of local problems and provides a way to demonize its protagonists who coincidentally still resist neo-colonial ambitions of the great powers.
“Historical amnesia is a dangerous phenomenon, not only because it undermines moral and intellectual integrity, but also because it lays the groundwork for crimes that lie ahead.”–Noam Chomsky
4. Organize amnesia.
Avoid serious recall of previous media manipulation. This would make the public too suspicious. When a Great Power prepares for or triggers a war, would it be the time to recall the MSM lies of previous wars ? To learn to decipher the information provided by the interested Military HQ? Each time and conveniently, the new war is labeled a “just war,” even more immaculate than its preceding ones; and as usual, it is not the time to be divided on the issue, the debates will be for later…or never? A clear case: The infamous and ever elusive WMD that served as the springboard to launch a war of aggression against Iraq!
It is said that peace is a dividend of war, this premise prompts one to ask about the judicious nature of the said peace when it is constantly challenged with threats of a new war. War is always a failure, war brings out the worst in people, it unravels the moral sensibilities of men. Today, the world has never been that closely connected, isn’t it time to evolve into a paradigm of understanding and “live and let live,” on this planet we all must share?
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that, in the process, he does not become a monster. And when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you.” –Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil
Zine Larbaoui is a TLB Staff writer and Director and Sr. Admin of TLB’s website The Falling Darkness
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