A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Visuals as a Persuasive Tool for War

This was a widely used method to produce on a largescale at that period of time. The poster’s style seems to be inspired by street art, graffiti and punk graphics because of the vibrant colours used such as yellow, red, blue. It has a raw feel as it has inelegant handwritten text, scribbling, and colour brushing out of the lines and boundaries. The poster succeeded in grabbing social attention and conscience along with possessing a street art inspired

The United States government has historically used propaganda to entice, encourage, and even shame a person into enlisting in to the uniformed services and/or supporting the war effort. The effective use of propaganda does not only affect the American public’s opinion of a war and its leaders, but also affects their commitment to the war effort. Ineffective use (or lack of) of propaganda can lead to resentment and undermine public trust in its leaders and their ability to lead the nation. This essay will show how the use of media has either supported or hindered the effective use of governmental propaganda in influencing the American public during times of war and why is it sometimes not important to know what is the “whole truth.” The areas that will be covered will be the propaganda used during the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I-II, the Cold War/Vietnam, and also it’s affect on public opinion.

Cartoons have been a prominent and interesting apparatus for politics throughout the ages. Political movements, parties, and groups using propaganda to further their beliefs dates back to the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Though America faces an austere history, lighthearted propaganda colors its decades and gives them life. Political cartoons are so widely used in America that they have become a significant piece of pop culture. Moreover, because of their ability to capture the reader’s attention, propaganda is exploited throughout politics.The cartoons are wonders of the human imagination; illustrators create comical images and intertwine profound political opinions to influence their viewer’s mind. For example, one movement that abundantly grew from propaganda was the women’s rights movement. The artists of the seemingly despised cause drew controversial cartoons that set a fire in the hearts of women all over the world. Consequently, the same cartoons ignited a passionate war between women who wanted freedom, and those who believed that women could not handle that freedom. Through the use of colorful concepts and daring expressions, political cartoons display the influence of the women’s rights movement throughout history, while the cartoons of Anti-Feminists demonstrates the world’s reaction to the movement.

Since we already know who the people are in the posters we already have part of the image created in our minds about what the posters are about. The artist uses recognizable images and current events to bring about political and cultural thoughts onto the image. The message is brought on by the words and what is currently happening in the world. Each image is able to be shared by mass media and becomes better known. These posters would not make sense if they were put out during a time without the political effect. The hope poster would not make much sense if it was put out before Obama’s political campaign. Same with the grope poster it would not make sense if the sex scandal did not happen. The second and third image surely would not make sense if the first poster was never made. The joke poster would not be as recognizable if the Joker was not called The

‘It is possible that the relationship between graphic design and message is effected by the countries needs to stay favourable with their own people. Many of the messages were the same, highlighted in the superman image designed by Roman Cieslewicz in 1968 that appeared on the front cover of David Crowley’s “Posters of the Cold War” book, implying that both sides are a mirror image of one another, both equally harmful and destructive. Both sides wanted to highlight the other sides problems whilst enhancing their own achievements. By using playful illustrations that do not relate to the severity of the message the friendly, well meaning and safe nature that is so desperately wanted remains intact, regardless of the rhetoric in the messages.’ (HUMBERT, 2009)

The main Communist Party newspaper, Pravda, announced the issuing of each new poster, political or economic. Publishing information about the posters promoted the style of art among broad masses of Russia. In addition to announcing the new publication of a poster, Pravda would issue a review of the poster. Posters became such an important tool for propaganda, that the words, "Those who take down the poster commit a counter revolution", were printed at the bottom of each poster. Thus, "With the help of this handiwork in the streets and in the squares, the rapprochement between art and the people that other dreamers have been waiting for will come about. It is not pictures hanging in museums, or book illustrations passed among book lovers, or frescoes, which are accessible only to the few, but the poster and the lubok (Russian folk print), which are produced in the millions for the masses and the streets that will bring out to the people, show them what can be done and with brush and paint, intrigue them

I created a poster to show how the sculpture, “Sequence” represents the College of Design. To show this, I decided to make the poster about the College of Design at Iowa State University. The audience of this poster is the students because they are the people that would be applying to be a design student. To catch the attention of students, I thought a poster would work better so when they walk by throughout a busy day they will notice it. I also wanted the poster to be landscape or more horizontal because the sculpture is the largest item on the poster and would make it more convenient. This poster’s purpose is to encourage students to apply to the College of Design.

From the beginning of the Cold War, both sides used propaganda to help form international inference. The medium of communication evolved from print work (newspapers and books) to radio and television (newsreels and cartoons). These mediums became a mouthpiece of the state and were being used in pursuit of an overall influence on both neutral and enemy nations. The government put a lot of time and money into producing, contributing, and maintaining material of Cold War antagonism that would influence the public’s opinion on the matter. These efforts resulted in some of the most persuasive propaganda ever produced, assisting in developing international support, which then justified the government’s actions. Propaganda was also used directly against the enemy. Airplanes and balloons were used by all sides involved to distribute posters and brochures to the civilians.

I chose the Kill Bill movie poster. The message is that someone wants to kill Bill whether its bloody or they have to cut him like the letters they don't care. The writing style is lettering. It is sans serif and very serious font style. The type is simple which fits the message which is very straight to the point. The word kill is cut in the poster to further emphasis the brutality set out for Bill. This poster is a majority type with some background images. The small names of the actors and actresses balance out the large title. The black against the yellow has good contrast and the red blood splatter makes this poster more aggressive. The title of this poster definitely dominates. The K and L create movement on the poster by sweeping in

The word "YOU" stands out from the rest in a vibrant red, reinforcing the message. This poster was not only the protagonist of the First World War, but used again in the Second, proving that it fulfilled the objective sought.

During World War II, the Nazis propaganda machine was the primary tool to win over the minds of millions of Germans who did not initially support Hitler and the Nazis? anti-Semitic agenda. Josef Goebbels was the man most responsible for the Nazi?s racist indoctrination of the Germans, as the Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. He led the national takeover of all forms of media and entertainment that targeted and eventually penetrated the educational, recreational and religious institutions of Germany. Goebbels? goal was to depict the Jewish community as ?not German? and also as a group of people who had no loyalty to Germany, and even establish them as less than human through the Nazi Eugenics ideology. These myths were mostly perpetuated by films, rallies, books, newspapers, and posters. These efforts continued systematically despite efforts by anti-Nazi groups like the European Union and the White Rose, groups who were composed of anti-fascist Germans who produced many anti-Nazis propaganda leaflets during the war. These groups despised Nazism and wrote newsletters leaflets debunking the myths orchestrated by the Nazis propaganda machine, however their efforts were largely unsuccessful, as millions of German citizens believed the Nazi rhetoric regarding the Jews (ushmm.org). Much of the Nazi message was targeted towards German youth by controlling

“A picture is worth a thousand words”. This conventional and hackneyed cliché nevertheless holds an essential truth that applies to images circulated in society. Not only do pictures express words, but they also convey opinions, stereotypes, and negativity. The dissemination of images feeds the minds of observers, and inevitably molds the opinions of viewers. Cartoonists are aware of this knowledge and are able to channel the importance of this saying to deliver messages about situations, groups of people, or historical events. They hold the power to influence society with the drawings they produce and the additive features they incorporate into their cartoons.

The posters are particularly captivating because they are both informative and visually astounding. Each poster engages the audience at many levels. In each

Propaganda is performed through print, audio, and visual mass media. It is used for the promotion of the public’s activities in their life such as purchasing goods through market propaganda, and it is also found in politics, foreign affairs, and in many other fields. Most importantly propaganda is depicted in the informercialization of the news, which is connected with subliminal advertising and commercialization of public events and individual promotion such in communication websites. However, there is great debate over propaganda and persuasion that is casted in the media, which I will be elaborating in this essay.

It has a simple design but still conveys a message. Joost Schmidt, as a teacher at the Bauhaus and a graphic designer, paid close attention to what was now expected and designed the poster according to the new characteristics.