Anyone who's interested in understanding the function, process and effect of propaganda in our society should give this book a read. It's well worth understanding how marketing, advertising, and public relations are all just new labels the propagandist have slapped on the work that they do. This si a result of the original term, propaganda picking up a bad image following the end of WWII.

It's both eye-opening and scary. Edward Bernays wrote this book as propaganda for propaganda. He believes that propaganda is essential in shaping the opinions and attitudes of society. This is done by a small elite that tailor propaganda to achieve their aims. Below is an excerpt:

The conscious and intelligent manipulations of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of tour country. We are governed, our minds molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of. This is the logical result of the way in which our democratic society is organized.

Bernays shares how to do this, by sharing his own first hand experience in the process of manipulating the many for the benefit of the few. The tools that are presented in Propaganda have no doubt become more refined with time and experience, keep that in mind as you read. This book is essential to understanding how susceptible we are to having our thoughts and actions shaped by propaganda.