The Second Empire and the Press [electronic resource] : A Study of Government-Inspired Brochures on French Foreign Policy in their Propaganda Milieu / by Natalie Isser
Public opinion had roots in the nineteenth century with the developยญ ment of industrialization. What is this public? It is the mass of individuals who comprise a society or a nation; this mass in turn is divided into many groups, which have their own interests, prejudices, and beliefs. A governยญ ment, whether democratic or not, is well aware of the power of public opinion and is anxious to measure and shape it. All three branches of government may direct and educate public thinking, using the instruยญ ments of propaganda. Propaganda is any idea and action designed to influence the views and actions of others. Today's means of propaganda are books, newspapers, radio, movies, television, public schools, and lastly the rostrum. Molders of opinion believe that words, sounds, and pictures accomplish little unless they are carefully organized and inteยญ grated into a well-conceived plan. Once this is accomplished, the ideas 1 conveyed by the words will become part of the people themselves. Special techniques, such as the employment of fear and the play on prejudices, have been used quite succesfully by modern states to impose their own dogmas and policies. Because the social scientist has been aware of the study of public opinion, he may have concluded that it was a modern innovation; but governments have always been concerned with public opinion, though not always understanding it, and have attempted to influence it
CONTENT
I. The Role of Propaganda Before and After the Election of 1848 -- II. Napoleon IIIโs Methods of Creating Public Opinion, 1849โ1858 -- III. Brochures on England and Roumania, 1858 -- IV. Brochures on Italian Nationalism, 1859 -- V. Brochures on the Roman Question, 1859โ1870 -- VI. Brochures on Germany and Her Neighbors, 1860โ1870 -- VII. Brochures and the Apology for Defeat, 1868โ1870 -- VIII. Conclusion
