As a whole, ISIS and Soviet Russia do not have much in common. One is based in religion, while the other was blatantly anti-religion, and one is active now, while the other was dismantled decades ago. However, one thing that ISIS and the USSR have in common is their extensive use of propaganda. Throughout history, powerful and restrictive regimes such as these have used images of propaganda to spread their messages and generate support for their actions. The articles "ISIS steal Brian McCarty's Gaza photo for propaganda to recruit new members" and "Socialist Realism’s Russian Renaissance" discuss the types of propaganda that these groups use and why they are effective.
ISIS's main method of recruiting members is through the internet, specifically social media. This makes photography an effective form of propaganda for their cause, because it can be easily manipulated and distributed to a wide audience. By using the internet, they also make it difficult for their message to be removed or silenced, because it is nearly impossible to ever completely delete something from the internet once it is posted due to people saving and reposting things on social media. In Brian McCarty's case, he succeeded in having the photo removed from its original post on Twitter, but "it continues to pop up from time to time." (Kitching 4) The type of propaganda discussed in the article on Soviet Russia is very different from the images that ISIS uses now. Socialist Realism is a style mandated under Stalin, which "was to be for and about workers and depict an idealized version of everyday life." (Neumeyer 3) The paintings show happy images of determined, successful Russian workers and families. They have the clear goal of displaying a positive image of Soviet society, however the society that these paintings depict is nothing like the actual lives of people living in the Soviet Union under Stalin. The government pushed artists to create these paintings to spread a lie of prosperity throughout the country and to the outside world. One interesting difference between the types of propaganda used by ISIS and the USSR is the topics that they focus on. Images used by ISIS depict the idea that the world is against them and that they are wrongly under constant attack from the rest of the world. This message makes people feel angry and like an injustice is being committed, which motivates them to join the cause. On the other hand, Socialist Realism depicts positive, prosperous images that are meant to generate pride in one's country. This pride makes people feel more loyal to their country, and leads to greater support of their government.
3 Comments
4/11/2018 12:09:56 pm
I really liked the point you made about how ISIS's use of the internet as a major outlet for propaganda differentiates their use of propaganda because it makes it that much more difficult to eradicate. I also love how you talked about how the Soviet Union and ISIS use very different approaches to create propaganda and they're both really effective.
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Grace Barron
4/12/2018 07:31:00 am
I like your mention of the permanence and the effect of the propaganda. Propaganda on social media is typically more effective because it reaches a larger audience and can never really be silenced. These paintings, on the other hand, are in museums, however prior to that they were simply in the homes of individuals. The intent behind the propaganda leads to what medium the group or person may use, and I find it interesting that more groups are leaning towards social media as the world continues to modernize.
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Kenan
4/16/2018 08:27:37 am
I think that it's really interesting how you describe the way the internet lends itself to ISIS's use- how it's easily manipulated and easily distributed using social media, as well as the nearly impossible feat of fully deleting something from the internet- everything always leaves a trace, meaning that their message will never fully be erased.
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AuthorI am an art student at Maggie Walker Governor's School. On this site I post project progress, research, and photos of my final work. Archives
May 2018
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