The Mind of a Propagandist
Propaganda is something we hear about pretty frequently these days. It’s always been a powerful tool used by countless groups of people over time to exert influence and push an agenda. For most of human history, the ability to effectively produce and disseminate propaganda usually required a lot of time, resources, and new technology to achieve the desired result. But now, as technology continues to become more widely distributed and easy to use, the ability to create and spread propaganda to influence large swaths of people has increased dramatically. And there are no signs of that trend slowing down anytime soon. That being said, for how ubiquitous a concept it is, the definitions of what is or isn’t propaganda can vary widely depending on who you’re speaking to. Today I talk to Becca Stewart, the team lead for CTG’s Counter Threat and Strategic Communications team, to clear all that up. We’ll also discuss her team’s unique method combatting propaganda by putting themselves into the mind of a propagandist.