"A picture is worth a thousand words".
Or, at least, that's what the warring nations of WWII wanted to believe in
regards to the power of propaganda. WWII propaganda dehumanized, demonized,
ridiculed, humored, inspired and demoralized in myriads of ways. Its power
lay in its ability to persuade. Sometimes in the intended target of
propaganda was not one's own people - but the enemy. American forces dropped
leaflets on Japanese soldiers, telling them the War in Europe was over, to
make them long for the conclusion of their own long struggle.
Propaganda, in sum, is the use of art as a weapon. It is a way with words,
blended with images, in the pursuit of achieving an intended sympathy and
empathy in the mind of the viewer. For those of us in the 21st Century,
living in the "Age of Information", a question to reflect on is this?
Does war propaganda have the same effect on us as Americans as it did in
1941? When we're driving in bumper to bumper traffic on the 5-Interstate
Freeway, do the Pro and Anti war bumper stickers have the effect on us that
their owners intended? In an age of instant satisfaction and cheap digital
entertainment, has the power of the still image wanded? Or
perhaps...vanished?
