ARTICLE SUMMARY: There is no question that Graphic Design can exert a certain amount of influence over people and the way they think.
When you talk Graphic Design what comes to mind? Posters for special events, brochures extolling the virtues of one college or another, supermarket sales circulars, all to sell you something wether you need it or not. What people don’t think about is how Graphic Design is used by the governments of the world to influence the people of their country or other countries to think in a particular way about any number of things from politics to their culture. What isn’t talked about how governments go about this.
“THE CIA HAS ALWAYS UNDERSTOOD THE POWER OF GRAPHIC DESIGN” by Theo Inglis delves into the history of how the governments used design for propaganda and covert operations in an effort to sway public opinion one way or another on any number of topics though mostly political points of view. What may also be surprising to some are the methods used and some of the companies involved with the spreading of propaganda and disinformation, companies like
- Ford Motor
- Museum of Modern Art
- The Paris Review Magazine
Theo Inglis talks about how in the wake of World War II, both sides of the ideologically-motivated Cold War used culture and media as a weapon, aiming to win people over to their political viewpoints while counteracting negative perceptions among neutrals.
Historically the Cold War was an unsettling time in world history with Graphic Design in the middle of it all working behind the scenes to manipulate and influence a populations point of view. If your’e into history this article is for you.
Let us know what you think in the comments.
