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<\/a><\/p>\nBoris Efimov, “Whose Hand” (1925 Izvestiia Cartoon) with British Foreign Secretary Sir Austen Chamberlain controlling\u00a0the leaders of Finland, Latvia, Poland, Estonia, and Romania.<\/p>\n
Even though this segment of history is in the past, Norris concluded with the reminder that this propaganda stretches to the present with little variation. Vitalii Podvitskii, born in 1972, is the modern-day equivalent of Efimov. Using Uncle Sam as a metonymic representation of the United States and the capitalist West, Podvitskii sketches Western manipulation in Eastern foreign affairs for personal gain. Past and present lie on a continuum where the former is still bleeding into the latter.<\/p>\n
Vitalii Podvitskii Cartoon.<\/p>\n Chapman\u2019s follow-up on the present seemed to agree with Norris\u2019s closing statement while taking the conversation in a different direction. As opposed to political cartoons, she addressed present-day propaganda as it appears on Russian television. Approximately ninety percent of Russians use the television to tune into political news on a weekly basis. Chapman suggested that this is a result of the Kremlin\u2019s clever manipulation. She believes that the Kremlin understands it cannot close off society as the Soviet Union once did. Instead, it employs soft news programming as an entertaining means of incorporating more apathetic audiences into news media consumption. According to Chapman, the Kremlin\u2019s strategy aims to get the population interested and involved; the issue has become not necessarily what<\/em> is exposed, but how<\/em> it is exposed and ultimately publicly discussed.<\/p>\n Chapman cited \u201cThe Direct Line with Vladimir Putin\u201d as an example of such programming. Once a year, Putin goes on television to answer people\u2019s questions as they call in. The show has a gameshow feeling as audiences wait to find out if they will be among the lucky ones who get to speak directly with the president.\u00a0 Simultaneously, Putin appears accessible, qualified, and revered like a celebrity. As Chapman put it, the show \u201cdeals with very serious issues and wraps it up in an atmosphere of showmanship.\u201d As politicians are wont to do when topics get harried, Putin doles out a tasteful dose of \u201cWhataboutism\u201d in the face of heavy questions on the show. \u201cWhataboutism\u201d can be viewed as a form of red herring fallacy where the posed question is twisted back on the asker. Instead of directly answering the question at hand, Putin (and many other politicians) suggest that such issues (and perhaps even worse ones) are present elsewhere and in need of attention.<\/p>\n Source:\u00a0 By Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0, https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=48187818<\/p>\n Chapman ultimately concluded with the notion that while propaganda may not be very good at changing<\/em> opinions, it can strengthen<\/em> preconceived notions and beliefs. RT is a popular television news source, which stems from Russia. Second only to BBC, RT is prevalent even so far as truck stops in rural Wyoming, Chapman exclaimed. Feeling overpowered by Western reporting, Russia is advancing on the international front, slowly but surely airing its perspective.<\/p>\n Although the first lecture was led by Miami faculty, future sessions on additional issues of Russian propaganda and political ideology will feature guest speakers such as Anna Veduta, the Global Outreach Director for English Meduza<\/em> and former press secretary for Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny. Her talk will take place in Harrison 111 at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 20th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n An entire list of Havighurst lecture events can be found here:\u00a0 http:\/\/miamioh.edu\/cas\/academics\/centers\/havighurst\/news-events\/events\/index.html. Russia\u2019s prevalence in global affairs necessitates attention by more than just relevant faculty, majors, and minors\u2014all are welcome to attend.<\/p>\n Emily Erdmann is a senior majoring in REEES and French.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Emily Erdmann On August 29, many students joined faculty to watch Miami\u2019s own introduce the Havighurst Center for Russian and Post-Soviet Studies\u2019 lecture series on \u201cTruth and Power,\u201d a complement to Miami\u2019s Humanities Center lecture series on \u201cTruth and … Continue reading <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n