The Power of Advertising
Ed Bernays was right
In seeing advertising’s might
In consultations with Jung he saw
Manifestations of natural law.
Against smoking true ladies were resolute
For the only women smoking were prostitutes
Thus, to women raised with a silver chalice
A cigarette represented a pallid phallus.
So visions of flappers lighting and smoking
“Liberty Torches” provided cigarette companies profits beyond hoping;
And behind the scenes Bernays’ brilliant coup
Spelled the end of this long standing taboo—
And immortality for Bernay’s acumen
And for emancipated women equality with men
As Scientist would later answer
Those women now get pulmonary cancer.
In Gulf War One little Nayirah’s*** story so joltin’
Was brought to you by Hill & Knowlton
Of over 300 premie babes out of incubators cruelly tossed
Onto the floor like useless dross
Totally untrue but did this matter?
No the warlords just get fatter
Pappy Bush to Hitler Saddam compares
And the rockets are launched up in the air.
Baby Bush learned the lesson
When with Iraq he started messing.
Where with lies and skillful perseveration
He launched Operation Iraqi Liberation (oops OIL)
Which could his reputation spoil–?
But nevertheless blatantly revealing.
So it was quickly changed to something more concealing
And now it’s called Operation Iraqi Freedom
And clearly meant to mislead them.
Regardless, an act of aggressive war beyond doubt
That could never have been sold without
Boldfaced lying and tergiversation
To an ignorant and unquestioning nation.
And the media –the protector of our bower-
Charged with speaking truth to power-
Where were they when information mattered?
But cheering the war and helping Iraq get battered
And retired generals describing with aplomb
The lethal attributes of our smartest bombs–
The latest in lethal high technology
Generating ghastly human pathology.
And just remember when your child is nagging
And you’re dead tired and your ass is dragging
That Madison Avenue knows how it works
For they have programmed your own little jerks****
To beg for this and to beg for that
Even though it will make you quite fat.
And although you’re the parent the kid’s really in charge
For advertising on this process is written most large.
And we are not talking peanuts for the sums are immense
And you have been suckered you have no defense.
You see the process is the same and most telling
That it does not matter what the big boys are selling
Bombs, burgers, bats, baseballs, politicians or wars
The advertisers are there and they are making us whores.
Howard P. Charman, MD 3-17-2011 and 5-7-2021
1. Mark Dowie in Rampton, Sheldon and Stauber, John Weapons of Mass Deception, Tarchar / Penquin press, 1995, Center for Media and Democracy pp1-3.
2. Bernays, Edward Propaganda and Crystallizing Public opinion; Goebbels used the techniques in this book for his attack on German Jews
3. Mark Dowie in Rampton, Sheldon and Stauber, John Weapons of Mass Deception, Tarchar / Penquin press, 1995, Center for Media and Democracy pp69-75. The testimony of Nayirah before the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. This committee, chaired by Tom Lantos and John Porter was not an official committee of the government, but had the appearance of being. Testimony was not given under oath. It was subsequently determined Nayirah was the daughter of Saud al-Sabah, Kuwait’s Ambassador to the US. It subsequently was determined that this girl was coached by the vice present of Hill and Knowlton. The charge of Baby Killer stuck and was echoed by President George Herbert Walker Bush. Although patently untrue, this brilliant propaganda branding Saddam Hussein a modern day Hitler provided a major the first Gulf War.
4. Free Speech TV program on Advertising directed toward children. Lucy Hughes in The Corporation: The Pathologic Pursuit of Profit and Power, Joel Bakan. Simon Shuster, 2004.
5. Democracy Now 12-5-18 interview of John “Rick” Macarthur author of Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the 1991 Gulf War.
2021
The Trump years represent the pinnacle of political advertising and propaganda. His mantra was fake news. He lied prodigiously and these were amplified by Fox News and social media with augmentation with Putin’s help. But as the Germans knew, the more outrageous the big lie, the easier it was to propagate. Joseph Goebbels had a copy of Barnays’s book Propaganda on his shelf (which horrified Bernays)Repeated often enough the big lie was accepted as true. 70% of the American people believed Sadam Hussein was responsible for 911. About the same percentage of Republicans believe the Big Lie, the election was stolen, and Trump is really the lawful president. This belief is being propagated on the web, and on Fox news. Belief in this is the sine qua non to be a member of Donald J. Trump’s Republican party. His Big Lie was the direct cause of the 1-6-21 insurrection which was and continues to be the greatest threat to our democracy.
Howard P. Charman, MD 3-17-2011 and 5-7-2021