Surveillance Means Security: Remixed War Propaganda [Paperback]

Micah Ian Wright (Author), J.R. Norton (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2006

Subversive and incendiary, this full-color poster book reworks classic war propaganda to comment on corporate corruption, domestic spying, election fraud, gay marriage, blind patriotism, the "War on Terror," and surveillance in America today.
With laughs and jeers, Wright’s distinctive artwork and astute political commentary offers timely and clever insight into the state of post-9/11 America. Surveillance Means Security! is the hilarious follow-up to Wright’s previous books of reworked propaganda posters, You Back The Attack! We’ll Bomb Who We Want! and If You're Not A Terrorist ...Then Stop Asking Questions.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

MICAH IAN WRIGHT is an artist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, Sunday Guardian (UK), the Washington Post, The Progressive, Christian Science Monitor, the Boston Globe and the Fox News Channel.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Seven Stories Press (November 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1583227415
• ISBN-13: 978-1583227411
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,871,447 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Micah Wright is a writer who has worked in film, television, video games, comic books and animation. Upon earning a degree in Political Science and Creative Writing from the University of Arizona, Micah relocated to Los Angeles and worked at Nickelodeon Animation Studios for six years. While at Nicktoons, Micah wrote for "the Angry Beavers" among other shows, and created Nickelodeon's first action-adventure show, Constant Payne.

Micah is also a political commentator and protest artist. His poster website has reached almost a million distinct hits with no publicity other than word of mouth. He has published two books of remixed propaganda posters. The first, "YOU Back The Attack, WE'LL Bomb Who We Want" includes a foreword by noted historian Howard Zinn and an introduction by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Micah's second book of posters, "If You're Not A Terrorist... Then Stop Asking Questions" contains an introduction by noted design expert Joseph Heller. Micah's third book of posters, "Surveillance Means Security!" is forthcoming from Seven Stories Press.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bull's eye yet again, January 1, 2007

By 

Robin Benson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Surveillance Means Security: Remixed War Propaganda (Paperback)

With this latest incendiary poster book Micah Wright will no doubt upset all the right people leaving the rest of us to laugh and appreciate his spot-on attacks against the folks in Washington. His first book of forty re-worked propaganda posters (You Back the Attack ISBN 1583225846) had some very vitriolic Amazon reviews, frequently extending to his personal life and almost ignoring the book. His brilliant work has that effect so he must be doing something right.

This book has fifty posters covering contemporary events like hurricane Katrina, election fraud, environment, gay marriage, Iraq (especially) or stem cell research and I like the way he chooses a past poster that frequently visually relates to the event he wants to comment on and then with a few added words, in the right typeface too, creates a mini masterpiece. Like the first book all the posters are on right-hand pages, on the opposite page is the text that backs up the posters message.

I was rather disappointed though, with the production of the book (only worth three stars if I was judging on this). In the back of the book are 128 footnotes and it is frustrating to have to flip to the back each time, also in the back are large thumbnails of the original posters. The notes and originals clearly belong on each relevant spread especially as there is already plenty of space on the left-hand text pages. For the next poster book it would be nice to see some attempt at a better editorial design to make the book more user friendly.

By the nature of contemporary politics it looks like Mr Wright will be kept busy creating little gems that most of us will inwardly chuckle over and of course annoy all the usual suspects.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny Book That's All Too Necessary, January 25, 2007

By 

Eric Robert Gobragh (Santa Monica, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Surveillance Means Security: Remixed War Propaganda (Paperback)

This book is hilarious, thoughtful, and timely, especially considering the news which has broken since it was published; that Bush has unilaterally granted himself the right to open Americans' mail without a warrant, that he's snooping through Americans' private credit reports, that the Pentagon has quadrupled its surveillance of American anti-war activists.

The book contains 50 full-color "modern propaganda" posters which come "from" the Bush Administration and the "Ministry of Homeland Security" and attempt to sway Americans to support illegal wiretaps, torture, war, intelligent design, etc. Each poster is accompanied by a well-written essay summing up the salient points of the issue and devastating Bush's legal reasoning and excuses for his positions. It's a hoot. Highly recommended.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wright keeps swinging with new volume of posters...., January 13, 2007

By 

Jesse Baker (Wise, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Surveillance Means Security: Remixed War Propaganda (Paperback)

Fans of Micah Wright's propaganda posters will rejoice as a new volume collecting the highly detailed, carefully and professionally photoshopped images, based on old timey propaganda posters from the 1940s. Filled with the biting social commentary fans expect from Wright, this third book lives up to the quality of the previous two collections. Humorous and biting with the way they address the ills inflicted upon America by the Bush administration, the posters in this new volume hit the spot as they go after the Bush Administration and it's betrayal of America through it's cruelty and ignorance......