Unfortunately, propaganda is not reserved for authoritarian countries. The most common type of propaganda is used to motivate wars. The reason it is necessary i

Unfortunately, propaganda is not reserved for authoritarian countries. The most common type of propaganda is used to motivate wars. The reason it is necessary is because soldiers won't engage in mass killing without some strong (supposed) moral basis. Propaganda is required for all wars, recent and distant past, including not only your least favorite but also your most favorite nation states. One of the most detrimental false beliefs that people have is that propaganda is only used by "the bad guys". Nation-states count on this because it short-circuits critical thinking that might lead to closer analysis of the messages they are promulgating.