IGC Exam summary

Week 1: Lecture
Legends & Myths:
- Fairytale: wonder tale involving marvellous elements and occurrences, not
necessarily about fairies
- Legend: traditional story told about a particular place/person
o Formerly the term legend meant a story about a saint
o Resemble folk tales in content: supernatural beings, mythological
elements, explanations of natural phenomena, but associated with a
particular locality/person
o Told as a matter of history
- Myth: symbolic narrative, usually of unknown origin, at least partly traditional,
seems to relate to actual events, associated with religious belief
o Specific accounts of gods/superhumans involved in extraordinary
events in an unspecified time
o Very powerful: all societies are built upon myths (myths are
superstructures of society) interpretation of history makes the story
- Ideology: form of social/political philosophy in which practical elements are as
prominent as theoretical ones
o System of ideas that aspires to both explain the world and change it
Cognitive dissonance: when faced with a (new) fact that directly contradicts a longheld belief, people tend to resist against these facts. People should be critical
about their beliefs/knowledge
Week 1: Huntington (1993) Clash of Civilizations
Hypothesis: the fundamental source of conflict in the world will not be primarily
ideological/economic, but cultural
- Civilization: cultural entity, highest cultural grouping of people and the
broadest level of cultural identity people have
o Major civilizations: Western, Confucian, Japanese, Islamic, Hindu, SlavicOrthodox, Latin American, African
o Islam clashes with the most civilizations (bloodiest borders)
Reasons for future conflicts:
1. Differences among civilizations are real, basic and fundamental
2. Globalization: world is becoming smaller more interactions between
civilizations
3. Economic modernization/social change is weakening the nation state as a
source of identity (decrease of nationalism, religion has often filled this void)
4. Growth of civilization consciousness due to the dual role of the West (West is
at its peak of power non-Western civilizations react by going back to their
cultural roots)
5. Cultural differences are less changeable and thus less easily compromised
than political/economic ones
6. Increase of economic regionalism
Example of clash of civilizations: clash between the Island and the West
West vs. the rest

o
o

Differences in power and struggle for military/economic/institutional

power
Differences in culture

Criticism on Fukuyama: the idea of one universal civilization is a Western one.

Other civilizations may modernize but they will never westernize.
The West needs to accommodate non-Western modern civilizations whose
power will approach that of the West but whose values and interests differ
significantly from those of the West
Conclusion: we will have to learn to coexist
Week 1: Fukuyama (1989) The End of History
Hypothesis: Ultimate triumph of economic/political liberalism in world history will
lead to the end of history: the end point of mankinds ideological evolution and the
universalization of Western liberal democracy as the final form of human
government
History of human society can be seen as an evolution, we are now at the last stop:
the last correct civilization, which is a liberal democracy (seems to fit human nature
best)
Liberal thinking: the victory of one idea over the other (in this case: the Western
idea)
- Major challenges to liberalism:
o Fascism: idea of fascism destroyed by WWII
o Communism: even in China, ideas whose connecting thread is
liberalism steadily replace notion of communism all together
- Possible new competitors for liberalism:
o Religion, but doesnt seem to take on universal significance
o Nationalism, but is not necessarily irreconcilable with liberalism
Implications:
- De-ideologized world isnt so different from current situation
- Aggression/insecurity are characteristics of human societies in general rather
than the product of specific historical circumstances
- Death of communistic ideology: growing marketization of international
relations together with the end of shitory will also end
imagination/idealism/courage only focus on customer demand will remain
Criticism:
- Fukuyama refuses to see diversity in the world
- Ideologies are mythologies: it is about what we believe, and our beliefs are
not one shared reality
Week 2: Lecture
Strategic mass communication
- Misinformation: to inform wrongly with no intention to mislead
o Hyper information: agreed upon information, true enough (e.g.
Wikipedia)
o Cognitive dissonance: misinformation is sometimes preferred

Disinformation: to spread lies on purpose (e.g. Stalin)

Propaganda: to aim at controlling peoples beliefs (e.g. Illuminati)
o Not necessarily about lying: often info cant be proven wrong since it
deals with beliefs
o White: origins of propaganda can easily be identified
o Grey: origins of propaganda are unknown
o Black: origins of propaganda are false (from a different source than it is
said to be from)
Principles of propaganda
- Covert
(should not appear to be propaganda)
- Fun
- Emotional (appeals to emotions)
- Simple
- Binary(provides audience with 2 options)
- Repetitive
Simplify & Repeat = secret to propaganda (e.g. Joubert Singers Stand on
the World, message: dont question god)
Link to mythology:
- Strategic mass communication on a global level creates mythologies
- Propaganda can be used to manufacture mythologies
Propaganda techniques
1. Shift of scene: to put the spotlight on the opponent instead of ones own
unfavourable situation
a. E.g. Triumph of the Will: from bad situation in Germany to how Hitler
brings new hope
2. Assertion: positive statements presented as facts
a. E.g. London Can Take It
3. Pinpointing the enemy: complex situation is reduced to the point where the
enemy is unequivocally defined
a. E.g. Why We Fight: Prelude To War (1943): explains who were fighting
against
4. Bandwagon: persuading the target audience to take a course of action
everyone else is also taking reinforces peoples natural desire to be on the
winning side
a. E.g. Education for Death, Walt Disney Studios: kid is punished for
thinking differently
5. Least of evils
a. E.g. Bush declaring war on terrorism
6. Virtue words: tend to produce a positive image
a. E.g. American Soooooldieeeeerrrrrr: words like freedom, peace
7. Card stacking: only choosing and presenting facts that support the
propagandists purpose
a. E.g. Soviet-Union propaganda
8. Plain folks: convincing the audience that the propagandists positions reflect
common sense
a. E.g. ISIS recruitment videos
9. Fear
Week 2: Bernays (1928) Manipulating Public Opinion
Public opinion: the thought of a society at a given time towards a given object
- Slow, reactionary

Can be manipulated to gain acceptance for new ideas

Need to understand:
- Human motives (group adherence, use of influential/authoritative figures)
- Special interests
- Functions/limitations of various media
Ideas must be dramatic/impressive to overcome the slowness of established
traditions/prejudices
o E.g. changing attitudes of whites towards blacks

Week 2: Walton (1997) What is Propaganda, and what exactly is wrong with it?
Propaganda has a negative connotation: unethical, illogical However, just because
its used to appeal to people (argumentum ad populum), its not automatically
wrong
Propaganda is not wrong just because of the fact that it is propaganda, but
can be because of individual arguments used in propaganda
Characteristics of propaganda
- Dialogue structure
- Message content (= an argument)
- Goal-directed structure
- Involvement of social groups
- Indifference to logical reasoning (appeals to emotion, not ratio)
- One-sided argumentation
- Involvement of persuasion dialogue
- Goal justifies the means (means = propaganda)
- Emotive language/persuasive definitions
- Eristic aspects
Week 3: Lecture
Hollywood: edutainment/infotainment major provider of knowledge
Eco: 70% of what we know comes from Hollywood Hollywood as global
communication/mythology
Hollywood as Dreamland:
- E.g. Americana (Rockwell): idealized America
- W.A.S.P. ideology: White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant males (E.g. Forrest Gump)
o Redemption
o Self-made men
o The frontier
o Capitalism & Liberalism
- Always about entertainment (and in early Hollywood: always about America)
The world according to Hollywood:
1. Birth of mythology
a. E.g. Birth of a Nation (Griffith, 1915): first real Hollywood movie
Infotainment: about history of Ku Klux Klan (extremely racist)
2. Old vs. new world
a. E.g. The Jazz Singer (Crosland, 1927): first talking movie
3. Good vs. evil
a. There are only two kinds of people in the world Binary
Propaganda?
i. Hollywood as propaganda: sometimes, obvious or not so obvious
b. Projection: seeing things that are not in the movie (so if you want to
see propaganda in it, you will)
4. Us vs. Them
a. The Green Berets (Kellog & Wayne, 1968): helps people relate to events
in the movie (in this case, the Vietnam War)
b. Moscow on the Hudson (Mazursky, 1984): patriotic or propaganda?
5. Violence

6. Stereotypes
7. Histories
a. Mythologies of America applied as fillers to the rest of the world (e.g.
Braveheart, Gladiator)
b. Biopics
8. Product placement
a. Pursuit of mass consumption
b. More efficient than advertising
c. Risk of altering stories (e.g. less movies will take place in the past,
since new products cannot be shown there)
9. Happy ending & redemption
a. Description of situation crisis Resolution of the crisis
b. E.g. Schindlers List: Redemption
Week 3: Shaheen (2000) Hollywoods Muslim Arabs
How screen images have an impact on Arab/Muslim identities Shows the effect of
Hollywood in the real world Note: article was written before 9/11
Stereotyping of Arabs in Hollywood movies leads to:
- Low self-esteem
- Impacting of policies
- Injuring of innocents (hate crimes)
- Encouragement of divisiveness
Reflects biases (e.g. Bloody Sunday: Brad Pitt as terrorist Hes Brad Pitt, he
cant be that horrible)
Movies create myths: stereotypes are often believed due to the repetitive effect
(movies only focus on violent Muslim minority)
- E.g. characterization of Palestinians as religious fanatics threatening our
freedom (even Aladdin is racist)
- Arabs are the modern day Native Americans of Hollywood
Feels like an undeclared war on Arabs by Hollywood But: Hollywood wants
to make money and thus makes what the people want to see
Negative images of Arabs in movies/TV are sometimes perceived as real
portrayals of Muslim culture
Cognitive dissonance: even though you know not all Arabs are violent, you can
perceive them to be because of all the images you are exposed to.
Week 3: Aug (2002) Hollywood Movies: Terrorism 101
General opinion: terrorists generally hate the US
- Hollywood portrays US as big/arrogant/violent
- Correlation between Americas broadcast of itself (big/arrogant/violent) and
the global image people get from this cultural transmission
Terrorism movies became the truth after 9/11
- Violence sells: violence is acceptable as long as its directed against forces of
evil
- Scary movies do well, as long as they are not too realistic

 Conclusion: We learn about the world through Hollywood: films influence our
lives/perspectives
Week 3: Forrest Gump
Week 4: Lecture
Story: a narrative
1. Orientation (beginning/description)
2. Complicating action (explanation)
3. Ending (evaluation)
Power of a story does not come from its clarity/moral message, but from its
allusiveness and when & how a story is told Hall: encoding/decoding messages
- We all have different interpretations which lead to different readings
o Preferred reading
o Negotiated reading
o Oppositional reading
- Perception theories: the way in which you read media stories
Aimed at:
- Sharing knowledge
- Teaching something
- Sharing/spreading information
Framing vs. storytelling: both try to convey a message
- Frames: effective when clear/consistent, salient because of resonation, they
are created/constructs
- Stories: distinct in their ambiguity, they require interpretative participation
we read a story how we want to read it, which we cant do with frames
Narrative features
- Power to mobilize
- Understanding depends on credibility/familiarity
o A story might be in accordance with your reality, but not necessarily
- Folk concept, just like myths
Corporate storytelling
1. Composition (tension, context, explosion of action)
2. Literary techniques (perspectives, persona, tropes, motto, symbolism, style)
3. Motivators (money, community, family, safety, curiosity, health)
Why do stories matter?
- Decline of grand narratives (mostly linked to religion/ideology)
o Newer/smaller stories are replacing the grand narratives (e.g. Die
Welle)
o Todays stories: more focused around popular culture
- Confirming vs. challenging your point of view
o Hegemonic & counter voices (e.g. Blurred Lines parodies)
Ideology: system of ideas that both aspire to explain the world we live in as to
change it

 There seem to be less great ideologies (as grand narratives decline) so we

invent them ourselves
Conspiracy theories: the belief that some covert but influential organization is
responsible for a circumstance/event (e.g. Illuminati)
- Provides a better story for many (something to believe in)
- Comeback of religion? Beliefs are based on stories
- Halo effect: famous person is successful everything they do turns into gold
they must have a secret/belief for their success (e.g. Tom Cruise &
scientology)
Types
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

of conspiracies
Enemy outside (pinpointing the enemy)
Enemy within
Enemy above (elites)
Enemy below (common people, e.g. Occupy movement)
Benevolent conspiracies (e.g. angels)

Week 4: Poletta (2009) Storytelling in Social Movement

Power of stories comes from their ambiguity (audience fills in the gaps
interpretation) how a story is evaluated is almost just as important as the content
of the story in order for the story to be effective
How are activists constrained in their ability to use culture effectively? Framing
- Frames do not necessarily have to be clear to be effective
- Little attention for how social conventions shape frames (social conventions
do shape what kind of stories are told)
- Problematic: the assumption that culture is separate from experience
Narrative:
- Openness of interpretation
- Point of view can change
- Credible because the form is familiar easy to identify as a narrative
Using personal stories has both advantages and disadvantages
More important than which stories are being told is when & how they are being told
activists have to battle against a web of stories that together make up hegemonic
discourse
Week 4: Chidester (2012) South Park & Whiteness
South Park communicated differences in/through the absence of the Other
Fragmentation of Whiteness turning inward to see less desirable aspects of
whiteness (all characters but Stan depict one or more of these aspects)
- Stan: personification of holisticness of whiteness
So in the end, South Park still reinforces persisting notions of race
Shows how a media product can tell us something about cultural/racial
relations

Week 5: Lecture
Public Relations: e.g. Thank You for Smoking (2005), Wag the Dog (1997) about
president running for office while hes involved in underage sex scandal invention
of war to distract media/audience
- Definition: the activity/job of providing information about a particular
person/organization to the public, so that people will regard that
person/organization in a favourable way (rebranding)
- Bernays: father of public relations (sounds better than propaganda is shift
of scene in itself)
Public Relations = propaganda
Elements of PR
- Newsmaking
- Media target
- Audience target
- Story, story, story
o Trendsetting
o Bandwagon effect
Elements of Marketing (Marketing is not the same as PR!)
- Product
- Price
- Place
- Promotion
Elements of advertising
- Control
- Repetition
- Credibility
- Attractiveness
Place branding: the promoting of a place by identifying it with a particular brand
- Global competition
- Goal: attracting the right target
Cultural diplomacy
- International broadcasting
- Logos of countries/nations
- Education
- Gastrodiplomacy
- Social Media
Spin doctor: a person whose job involves trying to control the way something is
described to the public in order to influence what people think about it
Famous spin doctors:
- Alastair Campbell (Blair)
- Karl Rove (George W. Bush)
- Holtzman (Qatar World Cup 2022 among others)
- James Carville (Clinton Showed Clinton was a self-made man unlike Bush
sr. for example, who came from a wealthy family)

Ruder-Finn Company (Croatia among others Made Croatia seem the good
guy in the conflict)
Shows importance of PR agencies in global conflicts/relationsPublic opinion
can pose a real threat to governments/administrations
-

Week 5: Bates (2006) PR from the Dawn of Civilization

PR: seeks to establish/maintain mutually beneficial relationships obtaining a
positive image (through media) is key, often through use of soft power
- PR in the formal sense began with the invention of writing
- 1923: Bernays coins the term PR
- 1960: PR has become a full-blown professional enterprise
- E.g. Declaration of Independence USA as free, democratic country
- 20th century: bloom of PR
PR D-day: 9/11 various organizations/institutes/companies had to use PR to make
the American people feel safe again and to make them feel like nothing had
changed
Minimize potential for public panic
Week 5: Taylor (2007) The Not-So-Black Art of Public Diplomacy
Hollywood as global messenger How is the USA not loved?
- Presenting itself as the one true superpower (scapegoat: people blame the
powerful)
- Iraq War, re-election of Bush
- Ignoring climate change
- War on terror (violating human rights)
Solution: public diplomacy (not changing US policies, but explaining them in a
better way)
National leaders influence foreign opinion through
- Substance policies
- Style charisma
- Spin
Mix of substance and spin
- Attention to multi-faceted image: people hate and love different elements of
the US American Exceptionalism: Americans often see their country as the
best in the world, they need to realize that foreigners dont share this view
- Related to the say-do problem: USA saying one thing but doing the other
- Cognitive dissonance: peoples beliefs of the US are different from the facts
o Need to distinguish between true perceptions and miscommunication
o If the messenger is distrusted, so will be the message
- Events are hard to control
Week 6: Lecture
Israelis (jews) From a Israeli point of view (so biased)
- Had to find a place for themselves Zionism
- After WWI: to Palestine (because Palestine had never been independent
anyway)

First president: David Ben Goerion

Conflict between Israelis and Arabs Israelis win, but Arabs dont give up
country Israelis take Sinai Arabs attack on Jom Kippoer
Israelis have to keep defending themselves by attacking
UN recognises Israels right to exist, but they are still not accepted
Israel: Only democracy in the Middle-East

Palestinians (Arabs) From a Palestinian point of view

- Palestinians forced to leave Tel Aviv (formerly known as Jaffa)
- Palestinians live under occupation
- Strive for independent state: so that people get their rights back (e.g. health
care, moving freely in the Gaza area)
Both sides have legal/historical arguments which means that is not enough
anymore
Both sides play on the emotional level to gain support
o Suffering
o Children (think about the children)
Mohammed al Dura: said to be killed by Israelis, but it was also said that he was still
alive and that his death is a lie by Palestinians
Bias becomes clear from just mentioning the name of the capital: calling it Tel Aviv
means you recognize Israel, calling it Jaffa means you support Palestine
Israel vs Arab World
- Hasbara (Advocacy in Hebrew)
o Public diplomacy strategy of the government of Israel
o Semi-official propaganda of Israel
o Israeli nation branding Shifting public opinion (shifting scene)
- Pallywood (Palestinian Hollywood) as propaganda
Hezbollah: Party of God: military/political group that fights Israel not only with
weapons, but also with communication
- It is not the army of Lebanon, but it is Lebanon (and other Islamic states)
against Israel
- 30 days of war between Hezbollah and Israel
The modern Arab world: putting the Emirates on the map
- Tallest building in the world: Burj Dubai
- Movies: Sex & the City in Abu Dhabi did not properly reflect the women of
Abu Dhabi, so movie got no permission to be shot there and was shot in
Morocco instead
The soft bigotry of low expectations: do we really want to learn from the Middle
East?
Week 6: Miles (2006) Al Jazeera
Article: pro Al Jazeera
- The station promotes free speech

Willing to present terrorists as legitimate political commentators

o However, access/air time endorsement of terrorists
o Al Jazeera never supported violence against the US
o It has no illegal funding
Not anti-semitic
o Shows Al Qaedas point of view as well as Israels
Informs people, but does not spread political freedom however
o Free speech political reform
(Commercially) biased, but so are all other news outlets
Not truly censored, although it has strong ties with the Emir family in Qatar
The international station brings the news to the West, instead of the West
reporting in the Middle East

Week 6: Kalb & Saivetz (2007) The Media as a Weapon

The 2006 war between Israel (a state) and Hezbollah (an organization) was
asymmetrical article describes Al Jazeera as being hostile to the west (so anti-Al
Jazeera)
- Internet: live feed during the conflict Camera/computers became weapons
of war
- Closed society is better at controlling messages it wishes to convey to the
world than open societies are
o Therefore, Hezbollah was more successful in conveying a carefully
orchestrated message to the world (were a selfless, religious
movement) than Israel was
o However, the war was indeed linked to religious fundamentalism/Arab
nationalism
- Hezbollah will win the war from Western modernity on the information
battlefield by media manipulation (Hezbollah claimed victory of the war,
though technically, no one won)
- Coverage of the war: focused on disproportionality on Israels side
o Focus on victimization/humiliation of Arab countries
o Israel made vulnerable by the flow of asymmetrical information
- Live war coverage: changes nature of war and journalism (and Arab media
was never objective to begin with)
Challenge for responsible journalists to cover asymmetrical warfare
Week 7: Lecture
Idea of terrorism before 2001: America can handle it
After 9/11: end of illusion of safety
Link to mythology
Link to cognitive dissonance
Did the world change or did our perception?
- Perception of terrorism clearly changed
- Terrorism: not just Al Qaeda/Muslims/Arabs
Terrorism: the systematic use of violence to create fear and thereby to bring about a
particular political objective (Encyclopaedia Britannica) global phenomenon
Characteristics:
1. Political

2. Violent
3. Performed by sub-national/supra-national groups
4. Use of media
Terrorism is theatre:
1. Staged
2. Scheduled for maximum exposure
3. Emotional: terrorism is about sending a message (Its not about the money,
its about sending a message - THE JOKER HELL YEAH)
Is fear the weapon of the weak? The poor? The rest against the west? No.
Freedom fighters example: Northern Ireland IRA (republicans, pro-Ireland) vs
Unionists/Loyalists (pro-UK)
- 300 people were killed but it was not deemed terrorism due to involvement of
the government
- Hollywood supports IRA (again, the Brad Pitt as IRA terrorist example)
Key when it comes to terrorism: communication to gain support from others
Other notable organizations:
1. Anonymous
a. Considering the characteristics, it is a terrorist group
b. Terrorism is about creating an atmosphere of fear which Anonymous
does
2. Wikileaks
a. Violent? Reveals facts that could lead to violence
3. Animal rights/Nature preservation groups
a. Earth Liberation Front: Eco-terrorism
b. Animal Liberation Front
Terrorism links to the clash of civilizations (Huntington)
The Netherlands: People often do not feel threatened, but think of cases like Breivik
in Norway: could easily happen here too
- Theo van Gogh
- Pim Fortuijn ( Geert Wilders?)
- Queensday 2009 Apeldoorn
- MH17
Week 7: Ganor (2002) Defining Terrorism
Main argument: an objective definition of terrorism is possible and is imperative if
we want to fight it successfully (an international agreed upon definition is needed to
combat terrorism)
- Guerrilla and terrorists can fight for the same cause/goal, but use different
means
o Guerrilla: target military
o Terrorists: target civilians
- Terrorism national liberators: terrorist attack = means, liberation = goal
Terrorism:
- Use of, or threat to use violence

State
1.
2.
3.

Aim of activity is political

Targets = civilians
involvement:
State supporting terrorism
State operating terrorism through outside groups
State perpetrating terrorism through own groups

Terrorism = international, so international response is needed an international

definition would help with:
- Legislation/punishment
- International corporation
- States more reluctant to support terrorism
- Justify offensive action
- Negative effect on the attitudes towards population supporting terrorism
- Moral/utilitarian considerations by terrorist organizations themselves
Week 7: Theohary & Rollins (2011) Terrorist Use of Internet
Terrorists use internet for:
- Recruitment/radicalization (E.g. ULA & the Undead Prophet in In The Flesh!!)
- Method of propaganda distribution
- Means of communication (same example)
- Ground for training
There have not been big terrorist cyber-attacks yet, but this could very well be the
case in the future
Objectives of cyber-attacks:
- Loss of integrity
- Loss of availability
- Loss of confidentiality
- Physical destruction of information
- Publicity
Hard to fight cyber-crime: Internet has a decentralized nature
o Also: 1st/4th Amendment cause problems with shutting down websites
etc.
Information warfare: use of information technology/content to affect the
cognition of an adversary or target audience
Counter methods:
- Strategic communication, used to:
o Improve US credibility/legitimacy (change peoples perception of the
US)
o Weaken credibility/legitimacy of opponents (perception)
o Convince selected audiences to take specific actions that support US or
international objectives (call for action)
o Cause a competitor/adversary to take/refrain from taking specific action
- Counter propaganda
- Public diplomacy activities
Week 8: Lecture
Disaster movies: the idea that nature is going to destroy us
Our relationship with nature depends on our mythologies/ideologies
How protecting the environment is becoming an ideology:
- The Day After Tomorrow (2004): it is our own fault, not gods/some other
forces

An Inconvenient Truth (2006): If you love your children, watch this plays
on fear, bandwagon (so clearly propaganda) Also: Us vs Them

Debate on climate change

- Cynicism/scepticism
- Hypocrisy (mostly by celebrities: what exactly does Leonarde DiCaprio have
to do with the cause?)
- Propaganda (e.g. pinpointing the enemy (citizens), shift of scene, bandwagon,
fear)
o Also links to conspiracy theories (e.g. set up by companies that benefit
from climate change, like green energy companies), spin, public
relations (e.g. use of celebrities)
Greenpeace use mind bombs: reaching audiences with images so shocking that they
will never be forgotten (e.g. clubbing baby seals)
- Greenpeace conducts legal actions against those who conduct illegal actions
- Strength of Greenpeace: communication
o Speak to our emotions
o Provides us with a way to improve (this is what you can do to make
things better)
Climate change: Reality
Global warming: theory (could also be freezing)
Man-induced global warming: Ideology?
Week 8: Climate Change Panel NYC (2012)
Climate change poses a serious risk for NYC in terms of communities/infrastructure
(e.g. rise of sea level)
Risk = probability x damage
Uncertainties in climate system itself, measurements, future climate drivers
Recommendation: more research/better methods gain better
understanding
Week 8: McCright (2011) Denial of Climate Change
Aim of article: examining why white conservative males are most likely to deny
climate change relates to relatively high level of climate change denial in the USA
Reasons:
1. Identity protective cognition thesis: white male effect acceptance of
relatively high levels of environment risks because a high thrust in hierarchy
and authority
2. Political psychology thesis: heightened justification tendencies of political
conservatives defending the status quo and thus resisting change
a. Believing in climate change would challenge existing hierarchy
Week 8: Grand Finale
Week 1:
- Key concepts
o Fairytales/Myths/Legends
o Mythologies as superstructure in societies

o Importance of mythologies in histories/to explain todays world

o Ideologies
o Cognitive dissonance
- Case studies
o Joseph Campbell
o Ubuntu
o Fukuyama/Huntington
Week 2:
- Key concepts
o Misinformation/disinformation
o Propaganda: definition, origins, characteristics, principles, use
o Propaganda techniques
- Case studies
o Education for Death (Walt Disney, 1943)
o London Can Take It (1940)
o AMERICAN SOLDIEERRRR (Toby Keith, 2003)
Week 3:
- Key concepts:
o Themes of Hollywood: Old vs New World, WASP ideology, Good vs Evil
o Americana/Ecos 70%
o Product placement
o Happy ending
o History in Hollywood/Biopics
o Violence/censorship
- Case studies
o Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
o Forrest Gump (1994)
o Youve Got Mail (1998)
Week 4:
- Key concepts
o Narratives
o Framing (clear) vs Storytelling (interpretation)
o Decline of great stories
o Point of view
o Counter-voices
o Conspiracy theories
o Halo effect
- Case studies
o Die Welle (2008)
o Blurred Lines & counter-voices (parodies)
o Scientology
Week 5:
- Key concepts
o Origins of PR
o Famous spin doctors

o Soft Power
o Public diplomacy: targets and goals
o Place branding: audience and tools
- Case studies
o Edward Bernays
o Wag the Dog (1997)
o War in former Yugoslavia
Week 6:
- Key concepts
o Communications of suffering (Israel/Palestine)
o Pallywood
o Hasbara
- Case studies
o Hezbollah and communication
o Mohamed al Dura: martyrology
o Israel and nation branding
o United Arab Emirates: Burj al Arab vs Sex & the City
Week 7
- Key concepts
o Terrorism: definition, history, characteristics, modus operandi, use of
media, terrorism is theatre
o Illusion of safety
o Hollywood and terrorism
- Case studies
o Irish Republican Army vs Ulster Volunteer Forces vs British Army
o Anonymous
o Terrorism and the Netherlands
o Animal Liberation Front