Thoughts on Bernays & Lippmann

My impressions from the two articles are as such: Bernays saw propaganda as a means for business growth not a way to impose his will and cause others to suffer. Rhetoric was a powerful tool in the hands of Bernays and in his mind of great benefit to all. Bernays probably thought of the public as a means to convey whatever intended message he desired. Bernays was fully aware of his manipulation strategies but saw them as secondary to the goal of getting a point across. Lippmann is wary of the information distributed to the public and he feels it is tailored to the sources desire. Lippmann probably found rhetoric to be useful but disturbing if used in a destructive manner. The "public" can actually be shaped to the liking of the propagandist based on their influence and authority. The public is probably unaware of this occurence but slowly over time as history has told us unspeakable acts have been the result of a slow burning propaganda filled plan.