Antagonists
On the reverse side of the propaganda coin, there have always been a group of intellectuals who rehearsed in attics throughout history and the world, critics of mass illusion. Such as George Orwell, Noam Chomsky and Pacheco Pereira
An unjustifiable tool or a misunderstood need?
These men did not hesitate: Propaganda is nefarious and must be combated at all costs – by way of critical thinking and individual expression.
Noam Chomsky
Political activist, linguist, professor
“Propaganda is to a democracy what the bludgeon is to a totalitarian state.”
Born in 1928, Chomsky was a critical voice against the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. He called the public’s attention to the danger of Propaganda in a democracy.
Chomsky considers the Media to be the most effective tool to carry out this control, serving, as it does, both the structures of power and the filters the powerful create.
George Orwell
Reporter, soldier, writer
“All Propaganda is lies, even when one is telling the truth.”
Born in 1903, Orwell was a visionary. His most popular work, 1984, raised awareness back in 1949 about the danger of a society that was highly controlled, with the Media restraining any individual expression.
What lesson can we take from here? Naming the first 24/7 reality show “Big Brother,” after the character who symbolised this control.
José Pacheco Pereira
Historian, Commentator, Political scientist
“There is no longer any government action except for Propaganda initiatives, one after another.”
Pacheco Pereira does not hesitate when he states that the quality of the Portuguese Media “is bad” and that “most of the questions are totally irrelevant, ill-prepared and badly thought out.”
The message is clear: we are witnessing “the transformation of the public space into spectacle, which is the ideal field for manipulators.”
Howard Zinn
Historian, political scientist, author
“If those in charge of our society can dominate our ideas, they will be secure in their power.”
According to Zinn each of us is a key piece in the Propaganda puzzle, since we all practice self-censorship.
Zinn believes that the news reports from the Vietnam War that were given by official channels were all misrepresented. Above all, they did not focus on the real story of the people.
Gore Vidal
Writer, essayist, activist
“The American press exists for one purpose only, and that is to convince Americans that they are living in the greatest and most envied country in the History of the World.”
He was an ardent opponent of the Vietnam War, as well as the Iraq War. He denounced the behaviour of the Media, which disappointed him so much, during these conflicts.
Is informing the public no longer a priority? Gore Vidal goes even further and declares that it is the last thing that corporate America wants to see happen.