Sep 9, 2026 IDEAS

The Propaganda Playbook: 10 Tricks

Bandwagon - "Everyone is doing it".
Makes you feel left out or stupid if you don't agree. "Millions already believe this."
Fearmongering.
Makes you scared, then offers their idea as the only salvation. Fear bypasses logic.
Name-Calling / Demonization.
Labels the opponent as evil, traitor, fascist, extremist, etc. So you don't have to debate their actual argument.
Glittering Generalities.
Uses vague, beautiful words with no real meaning: Freedom, Truth, Justice, Real Change. Sounds great, says nothing.
Card Stacking / Cherry-Picking.
Shows you only ONE side of the story. 1 bad fact about the enemy, 1 good fact about them, and hides the other 99 facts.
Plain Folks.
The billionaire in a hard hat. The politician eating fast food. "I'm just like you" to earn trust.
Testimonial / False Authority.
A celebrity, "expert" or influencer who has no expertise endorses an idea so you trust it without proof.
Black-and-White Fallacy.
"You are either with us or against us." No middle ground, no nuance allowed.
Repetition - The Big Lie.
Repeat a lie 1000 times until it feels true. Algorithms love this one.
Whataboutism / Diversion.
When caught, they say "But what about THEM?" to change the subject and never answer.

Propaganda never ends with "think about it".