The article contrasts a philosopher’s hunt for a clean definition of 'propaganda' with a sociological view that studies what propaganda does in mass democracies. It argues the latter—via Lippmann’s stereotypes, Bernays’ 'engineering consent,' and Ellul’s ambivalence—better explains modern opinion‑shaping systems.
— Centering function clarifies today’s misinformation battles by focusing on how communication infrastructures steer behavior, not just on whether messages meet a dictionary test.
Kristen French
2026.01.08
68% relevant
The article identifies a low‑level, functional route—facial mimicry—by which communicators can steer preferences before reflective reasoning; that maps onto the 'propaganda-as-function' idea which studies how communication systems steer behaviour regardless of propositional truth, suggesting a concrete psychological substrate exploiters could use to amplify persuasive messaging.
Rory O’Sullivan
2026.01.08
84% relevant
O’Sullivan’s piece shows how philosophical discourse (phenomenology, Marxism, existentialism) is mobilised within colonial and post‑colonial politics — exactly the sort of functional analysis of persuasion and institutional messaging this idea urges: Thảo’s life illustrates how intellectual arguments become operational propaganda or counter‑propaganda in anti‑colonial struggles.
Rob Henderson
2026.01.05
60% relevant
The authors highlight the hivemind’s strategic use of love, faith and belonging as instruments of influence — a functional description of propaganda (what it does) rather than a lexical quarrel — matching the idea that we should study influence by its functional effects on mass populations.
Chris Bray
2025.12.30
70% relevant
Bray’s argument about journalism acting as a mouthpiece for officials maps onto the functional view of propaganda: media processes (asking officials, repeating them) are doing the work of defining reality rather than adjudicating it, which is a propaganda‑as‑function claim.
Chris Bray
2025.12.29
68% relevant
The article focuses less on truth/falsity and more on the social function of attacks, counterattacks, and narrative choreography (e.g., attack the messenger, law of merited impossibility), aligning with the idea that we should study what communicative campaigns do in public life rather than only whether they meet a tidy definition.
el gato malo
2025.12.29
60% relevant
The post treats 'prebunking' as a functional propaganda tactic (instrumental information‑shaping) rather than a definitional debate, aligning with the idea that we should study what information institutions do (their function) rather than fight about labels alone.
el gato malo
2025.11.30
92% relevant
This essay reframes contemporary influence as a functional system—operations that shape behavior and perceptions rather than discrete 'falsehoods'—which mirrors the existing idea’s call to study what propaganda does (tools, effects, infrastructure) rather than look for a neat definition.
Isegoria
2025.11.29
62% relevant
The article documents rumors functioning as social explanations and meaning‑making around a secret state project; this matches the existing idea's emphasis on studying what communicative phenomena do (their social function) rather than debating narrow definitions of 'propaganda.' The Los Alamos anecdotes show rumor performing the sociopolitical role that the 'propaganda as function' idea highlights.
2025.10.07
100% relevant
McKenna’s synthesis of Lippmann, Bernays, and Ellul and his claim that definitions often smuggle in sociological assumptions.