Snow, Nancy. “Terrorism, Public Relations, and Propaganda.” Media, Terrorism, and Theory: A Reader. Ed. Anandram P. Kavoori. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006. 145-160. Print.

Snow uncovers the changing face of propaganda in the United States.  The “looming charge of…propaganda casts a shadow on legitimate tools of persuasion that may benefit…the people of the United States”.  Since the Cold War, public relations have been muddled with government propaganda.  The Public Relations Society seeks to change this stigma.  The goal to persuade the audience, whilst maintaining credibility, is overshadowed by propaganda’s negative connotations. The beginning of propaganda, rooted in Pope Gregory XV and his Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith “ to promote the Catholic faith against the rise of Protestantism in northern Europe”, started as a tool of persuasion.  It has since evolved into American Government by being used interchangeably with “public diplomacy”.  Every government, “no matter what level of control”, uses propaganda to promote a desired view or information.  But, the difference between real public diplomacy and propaganda rests in credibility and the representation of different views.  Public diplomacy “involves interaction…with non-governmental individuals” to present many different views. Propaganda remains the poison of this higher form of persuasion.  The public distrusts its government and rejects the honorable forms of persuasion in fear of manipulation.  To repair this, public diplomacy must build “influence, trust, and credibility” with their clients to ensure a better relationship with the public.    

Myers, Gustavus. “Rise and Progress of the Gangs.” The History of Tammany Hall. New York: Boni & Liveright Inc, 1917. 128-139. Print.

            Myers analyzes Tammy Hall’s fight with political opposition to retain their stronghold on the New York public.  In 1840, a change in personnel within Tammany leads the political engine to be run from “the bottom of the social stratum”.  The immigrants seek political refuge with Tammany; the Native American Party and the Whig Party “bar them” from the enjoyment of political rights.  Tammany sets up a new department bureau to drill the immigrants and provide them with the means to become natural citizens. All of this, of course, ensures the Tammany vote.  Meanwhile, in 1844, “the foreign vote outnumbered that of the native-born citizens”.  The Whig Party is bewildered by the assistance to the naturalization of the foreigners.  Tammany further ensures the immigrant’s vote by holding “Irish, German and French meetings in the hall, where each nationality (is) addressed in its own language”.  The hold of Tammany on New York is strengthened by the immigrant’s large vote.  Mike Walsh and the “ward heelers”, known as “gangs” started to develop both for and against Tammany Hall.  Competition between Tammany, the Native American Party, and the Whig Party continues throughout the early 1840’s with wins on each side.  With the election of William F. Havemeyer for Mayor in 1845, Tammany regains another win.  Although Havemeyer is replaced by his own party in 1846, the public continues its love and hate relationship with Tammany Hall.  The public remains fooled.    

Terror and Sex

I decided to research some of the more contemporary aspects of the media.  The article on the Clinton Scandal was particularly interesting because it serves as a marker for the change between factual reporting and "vamp" reporting.  This exploitation has evolved into many different types of media: tabloids, shout shows, talk radio, etc.  Here is my annotated bib for the source on Clinton:

Hachten, William A. “ The Clinton Scandal and Mixed Media.” The Troubles of Journalism: A Critical Look at What’s Right and Wrong with the Press. 3^rd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2005. 113-121. Print.

            

            Hachten observes the embarrassment of media journalism in the Clinton Scandal and beyond.  Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky in 1998 brings out the worst in media journalism.  The “mixed media”, or the incorporation of new trends and technologies in reporting, has “altered the news media”.  The 24-hour cable news, opinion-based arguments, and “slinking standards” of sources support allegations “rather than dig out the truth”.  The sources hold power over the media.  The power in mixed media shifts from factual news to opinion-based talk TV on such networks as MSNBC and Fox News.  The journalism rule, that every source must be verified by two separate sources before being published, has been replaced by propaganda and the desire for “blockbuster stories”, such as the Clinton Scandal.  The media “shout shows” spew propaganda and political opinion that confuses the public, leading to disdain for the news media.  Public opinion can be mended with the incorporation of stern policies that research the validity of each source.  The doubt that exists in public opinion for the future of media journalism is based on the anticipation of the next big story.  A return to traditional journalism can, hopefully, mend the media’s relationship with factual reporting, and place them in good favor with the public view.