Propaganda Techniques: Bandwagon

[dhchase]

Summer Reruns, Repost.

Brought to you by
The Institute of Propaganda Analysis.

COMMON TECHNIQUES
Word Games
Name-Calling
Glittering Generalities
Euphemisms
False Connections
Transfer
Testimonial
Special Appeals
Plain Folks
Bandwagon
Fear

LOGICAL FALLACIES
Bad Logic or Propaganda?
Unwarranted Extrapolations

http://carmen.artsci.washington.edu/propaganda/band.htm

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Propaganda Techniques: Special Appeals

Band Wagon

"The propagandist hires a hall,

[hotel room]

rents radio stations, fills a great stadium, marches a million or
at least a lot of men in a parade.

[No, that's PromiseKeepers]

He employs symbols, colors, music, movement, all the dramatic arts.

[videos, music, diagrams]

He gets us to write letters, to send telegrams, to contribute to his
cause.

[bring 10 people on Tuesday]

He appeals to the desire, common to most of us, to follow the crowd.
Because he wants us to follow the crowd in masses, he directs his appeal to
groups held together already by common ties, ties of nationality,religion,
race, sex, vocation.

Thus propagandists campaigning for or against a program will appeal to us
as Catholics, Protestants, or Jews...as farmers or as school teachers;as
housewives or as miners.

[Enlightened folk /graduates, those who have done the work]

With the aid of all the other propaganda devices, all of the artifices of
flattery are used to harness the fears and hatreds, prejudices and biases,
convictions and ideals common to a group. Thus is emotion made to push and
pull us as members of a group onto a Band Wagon."

(Institute for Propaganda Analysis, 1938)

The basic theme of the Band Wagon appeal is that "everyone else is doing it,
and so should you." Since few of us want to be left behind, this technique
can be quite successful. However, as the IPA points out, "there is never
quite as much of a rush to climb onto the Band Wagon as the propagandist
tries to make us think there is." When confronted with this technique, it
may be helpful to ask ourselves the following questions:

What is this propagandist's program?

What is the evidence for and against the program?

Regardless of the fact that others are supporting this program, should
I support it?

Does the program serve or undermine my individual and collective
interests?

There's more on the website, (of course)