Publications and Papers — Blog

A Concept Paper on Propaganda

Contemporary propagandists often referred to as doctors of spin, are highly criticized for misleading their audiences in order to achieve a specific and desired outcome on behalf of their client. Propagandists and the very notion of propaganda were not always viewed in such a contemptuous manner. In fact, propaganda – which dates back to 1622 when the Roman Catholic Church was attempting to broaden the reach of its religious doctrine – became associated with deception and immorality following the First World War. It is therefore not surprising that much of the contemporary literature on propaganda examines the concept in the context of military operations and training exercises or describes propaganda techniques using traditional war terminology.

The objective of this paper is to dissect the concept of propaganda – examining the mediums used for communication, its functions, and its constitutive features – in order to situate the concept of propaganda as a form of mass communication and therefore differentiate it from other forms of mass communication.

How might television negatively affect democracy, politics, and government policy in the aftermath of 9/11 in the United States of America?

On September 11, 2001, two hijacked planes crashed into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. A third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and a fourth crash-landed in a field in Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center towers, affectionately known as the Twin Towers, collapsed mere hours after impact. Two years after this tragic event occurred, CNN’s Phil Hirschkorn (2003) noted that the revised death toll of September 11 totalled 2,752 individuals, not including the 10 hijackers who crashed the airplanes.

The purpose of this essay is to determine how television might negatively affect democracy, politics, and government policy in the United States of America following the terror attacks of 9/11. In order to do so, this study begins by briefly examining the development of television technology and the origins of political broadcasting in the United States. This is followed by a discussion of theories on the negative effects of television news media on interpersonal trust, political trust, and policy support. After examining the effects of varying media forms, this essay shifts its focus to a post-9/11 evaluation of news media in the United States in order to examine the degree of influence that the media may have had on government policies, political attitudes, and public opinion. The essay concludes by discussing potential future impacts of information communication technologies on democracy, politics, and government.

Publications and PapersJennifer DumoulinJanuary 12, 2021Research, Media Effects, television studies

Inside and Outside of the House: The Relationship Between Freedom of Expression, Freedom of Speech and Parliamentary Privilege

Further to my previous blog post about digging through some of my old term papers from law school and my master’s degree, I’ve not only revised and updated one of my papers (and submitted it to a journal!) but I’ve also published the original draft on my website. The original version of the paper is titled “Inside and Outside of the House: The Relationship Between Freedom of Expression, Freedom of Speech and Parliamentary Privilege” - and you can find a sneak peek here!

INTRODUCTION:

Freedom of expression is a necessary condition for democracy. It ensures that issues of common concern are freely and openly debated and allows for the criticism of government actions. In this sense, its purpose is to “[promote] the free flow of ideas essential to political democracy and the functioning of democratic institutions”. Despite this important function, freedom of expression is not absolute. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [hereafter the Charter] permits limits on freedom of expression if they are reasonable and justifiable in a free and democratic society.

While it is possible to debate whether any limits to such a fundamental freedom are justifiable, and indeed the courts have done so many times, it is nevertheless commonly accepted that this is the case. Interestingly, freedom of expression is limited not only within society as a whole, but also within its governing democratic institutions. At first glance, such limitations appear counterintuitive. How can elected representatives properly deliberate and create laws if they do not have the ability to speak freely while doing so?

2020... Year in Review

Ah, 2020… it’s certainly been a year like no other. The pandemic has impacted many of us to an unprecedented and unexpected degree - personally, professionally, financially, psychologically - and I know that many people reading this are keen to see 2020 head out the door, but I think if we each took some time to reflect, we’d see that 2020 hasn’t been all bad news.

So, in the spirit of the New Year, I thought I’d take a moment and reflect on some of the big things that I’ve accomplished this year (and I hope that, if you haven’t done so already, this will inspire you to do the same).

Propaganda and the American Military Establishment: How Television Influences Attitudes, Behaviours and Perceptions

I’ve been digging through my own archives to find papers that I wrote during law school, my master’s degree and my undergraduate studies. It’s been a useful exercise that has allowed me to get back in touch with some of my earlier research interests - yes, there is a trend - as well as to reflect on the evolution of my writing.

It is therefore with great pleasure that I finally publish this paper from my master’s degree, submitted in January 2010, entitled Propaganda and the American Military Establishment: How Television Influences Attitudes, Behaviours and Perceptions.

The purpose of this paper is to examine propaganda, in particular wartime propaganda, in a post-9/11 context in order to understand the complex role that television plays as a tool of social control and mass persuasion. In doing so, this paper begins with an in-depth study of propaganda which explores the target audience and scope of propagandistic campaigns, the functions and objectives of propaganda, and, finally, the techniques and features employed in such campaigns. In order to distinguish between propaganda and other forms of promotional discourse, a discussion on the ethics of propaganda is conducted.

Finally, a case study focusing on the television series 24 is conducted to illustrate how patriotic and idealistic images can be used to mobilize support for the American military establishment and its strategic operations, including the acceptance of morally questionable conduct. This case study demonstrates the influential role that television can play in the context of wartime operations by encouraging support for the military and law enforcement agencies.

The Individual, the Office, and a Bible: A Critical Examination of the President’s and the Presidential “Body”

During the spring semester, I took a graduate seminar in the School of Nursing called “Histoire socioculturelle du corps” (or the Sociocultural History of the Body). As the final assignment for this course, I wrote a paper on “the presidential body” following President Trump’s Bible Photo-op in early June. The paper sits at the intersection of public relations and political communication. Public relations is a little outside of my wheelhouse, but I enjoyed reading for and writing the paper.

This critical essay (which you can read on my blog) examines how the president's body (as an individual) and the presidential body (as an institution) have been constructed through the use of photography, publicity, and force. To do this, this paper first examines how the physical body of the president has been positioned and represented in photo opportunities (hereinafter referred to as photo-ops) and public relations events to emphasize or minimize certain characteristics. Then, the presidential body (as an institution) is examined to shed light into how it participates in the positioning of the president’s body and how it has been perceived as a result of specific photo-ops and publicity moments.