This quote from the Reich Minister of Propaganda explains why these techniques are so effective—and so dangerous. People who are successfully manipulated don't feel manipulated. They feel informed.
This isn't about name-calling or political tribes. It's about pattern recognition.
Historians have documented exactly how authoritarian regimes manipulate populations. These techniques have been studied, catalogued, and taught in schools specifically so we can recognize them if they appear again.
So let's look at the techniques—from established historical sources—and see if any patterns look familiar.
The goal of propaganda isn't to make you believe a lie.
It's to exhaust your ability to distinguish truth from lies.
Technique #1: Attack the Press #
Independent journalism is the first target of every authoritarian movement. It has to be. A free press can expose lies, document abuses, and inform citizens. That makes it dangerous.
The Playbook
1930s Germany
Independent journalists branded as "enemies of the people." Press outlets seized or shut down. Only state-approved messaging allowed.
Today
"Enemy of the people" applied to mainstream media. Credentials revoked. Journalists threatened with prosecution. Alternative facts promoted as equal to documented evidence.
"Freedom of the press is not just important to democracy, it is democracy."
Technique #2: Control Information #
After attacking the press, the next step is controlling what people can read, learn, and access. Book bans aren't about protecting children. They're about controlling what ideas are permissible.
The Playbook
1930s Germany
Public book burnings. "Dangerous" books banned from libraries and schools. Only approved texts permitted in education.
Today
Thousands of books removed from schools. Dictionaries and encyclopedias banned in some districts. Teachers fired for having "wrong" books in classrooms.
In Florida alone, one school district removed dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the Guinness Book of World Records as potentially "inappropriate."
When they ban dictionaries, they're not protecting children from words.
They're protecting power from questions.
Technique #3: Create Scapegoats #
Every authoritarian movement needs an enemy—a group to blame for society's problems. The specific group changes; the technique doesn't.
The Playbook
1930s Germany
Jews, Roma, and others labeled as "vermin," "criminals," and threats to the nation. Dehumanizing language made violence acceptable.
Today
Immigrants labeled as "animals," "vermin," "invaders," and "poisoning the blood" of the nation. Entire groups criminalized regardless of individual actions.
The US Holocaust Memorial Museum specifically warns about the danger of dehumanizing language:
"The use of dehumanizing language is often a precursor to violence. When people are described as less than human, it becomes easier to justify their mistreatment."
Technique #4: Override Legal Constraints #
Courts, legislatures, and legal processes exist to check power. Authoritarian movements must either capture or ignore them.
The Playbook
1930s Germany
The Enabling Act of 1933 allowed the executive to bypass parliament and override the constitution. Sold as temporary. It never ended.
Today
Court orders ignored. Oversight blocked. Ancient wartime laws invoked for peacetime deportations. Federal judges defied while planes are in the air.
Technique #5: Demand Personal Loyalty #
In a democracy, officials swear loyalty to the constitution. In authoritarian systems, they swear loyalty to a person.
The Playbook
1930s Germany
Military and civil servants required to swear personal oaths to the leader, not to the nation or constitution.
Today
Officials fired for insufficient personal loyalty. "Loyalty tests" for government employees. Praise demanded in cabinet meetings broadcast on television.
How to Recognize Propaganda #
The quote at the top of this page is the key: Propaganda works best when those being manipulated are confident they're acting on their own free will.
Here are questions to ask yourself:
Check Your Sources
Where did this information come from? Can you trace it to primary sources? Are multiple independent outlets reporting the same facts?
Watch the Language
Is a group of people being described as less than human? "Vermin," "animals," "infestation"? That's a red flag documented by every genocide scholar.
Notice the Emotions
Does the message make you angry at a specific group? Fear is useful to propagandists. Thinking is not.
Question the Loyalty Demands
Who benefits when you stop questioning and start obeying? Democracy requires engaged citizens, not loyal followers.
The best defense against propaganda is not more information.
It's the habit of asking: "How do I know this is true?"
I'm not telling you what to think.
I'm showing you documented techniques from history, with sources you can verify yourself. I'm showing you current events, with sources you can verify yourself.
You get to decide if the patterns match.
But whatever you decide—make sure it's because you looked at the evidence yourself. Not because someone told you what to believe.
Think for yourself.
Verify everything.
Trust patterns over personalities.
—Brad
Full Source List #
- US Holocaust Memorial Museum: Path to Genocide
- Reporters Without Borders: US Press Freedom Index
- PEN America: Banned Books Tracking
- CBS News: Florida Dictionary Bans
- Migration Policy Institute: Immigration Research
- Brennan Center for Justice: Democracy Research
- National Constitution Center: Constitutional Resources
- The Atlantic: Loyalty Analysis
- American Immigration Council: Immigration Facts
- Columbia Journalism Review: Press Freedom Analysis