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Weapons of Mass Deception

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In this extremely well researched book, authors Sheldon Rempton and John Stauber argue that the Bush Regime generated public support for the invasion of Iraq by using a calculated public relations campaign and a series of flagrant lies. The authors base their argument on easily verifiable documents from the media, the PR industry, and a variety of respected government and research organizations. Whether or not you agree with the invasion or Iraq it is important that you understand that the Bush Regime felt the only way it could get support for this policy was to lie. There is simply no question, as this book proves, that the Bush Regime deliberately set out to lie to the American people and to the world about why it wanted to invade and occupy Iraq.

BRANDING AMERICA
The first chapter of this book explains how the Bush Regime set out to change public opinion about the America in the Middle East by running a brand campaign. The regime hired a PR specialist essentially to brand America and to promote that brand in the Middle East the same way one might promote Budweiser or KFC. The problem with Brand promotion strategies, however is that they are more about manipulation and forceful persuasion than about understanding and working with your target audience. Is it any wonder that this policy failed so spectacularly?

WAR IS SELL
The book's second chapter describes the numerous mechanisms of persuasion the Bush Regime employed to convince you and me that the war on Iraq was necessary. These included timing the drive to war like a product launch, publicizing the invasion-friendly views of right-wing think tanks that were recast as foreign policy experts, promoting the CIA funded Iraqi National Congress as liberators. Funny how none of these strategies had anything to do with telling the truth.

TRUE LIES
As it's title implies, the book's third chapter provides the nuts and bolts of Rempton's and Stauber's argument. Here the authors demonstrate how the Bush Regime falsely claimed that Saddam Hussein had direct ties to al Quaeda (he and bin Laden are sworn enemies), lied about Iraq's weapons capability, and created the false impression that Iraq is a major sponsor of global terrorism. Oddly enough our principal Middle Eastern ally, Saudi Arabia provides much more sponsorship for global terrorism than Iraq. Fifteen of the nineteen September 11th hijackers were Saudi and none were Iraqi. Let me repeat that for you: none were Iraqi.

THE USES OF FEAR
Perhaps the most important part of this book is it's fifth chapter entitled "The Uses of Fear." Here, the authors argue that the mass media, PR industry and advertising-all of which were used by the Bush Regime to promote the war in Iraq-and terrorism all share a common mindset best described as "the propaganda model." This model, according the authors aims to indoctrinate the audience with a pre-defined set of beliefs rather than to engage in the kind of critical thinking and communication that characterize a democracy. Put another way, the process that the Bush Regime used to persuade you and me that invading Iraq was a really cool thing was anti-democratic in nature. Where democracy is based on the premise that the people are capable of rational self-governance, argue Rempton and Stauber, propagandists regard rationality as an obstacle to efficient indoctrination. In other words, the Bush Regime could not permit a reasonable national discussion to take place about the invasion of Iraq. Instead it needed to indoctrinate us with the same false themes again and again and again, until by virtue of consistent reinforcement they became a truth in themselves. The most distressing part of this process, as the authors point out, is not only how the Bush Regime used fear to promote false concepts to the American people but also how they did so to justify withholding information from us.

THE AIR WARS
The authors also demonstrate that the Bush Regime-largley through corporate cronies-used the air waves both to promote the war and to censor or punish any pubic opposition to it. Pro war rallies were launched by Clear Channel a radio monopoly owned by a long time Bush business partners and campaign contributor.

After reading this book, I hope that people-regardless of their political beliefs-will ask themselves some hard questions about what they know about their government and more importantly, how they know it. Now, more than ever, it is essential for us to distance ourselves from our personal feelings, and especially our sense of fear, in order to take a good hard look at the facts. We may not have the authors' resources or expertise, but we can read this book and others like it and we can verify its source material most of which is publicly accessible. It may not be a fun or easy process, but when we do this, we begin to take control of our lives and to see things as they are instead of how powerful interests want us to see them. This book and others like it do much more than exposing the mendacity of the Bush Regime's drive for war. It shows us how we can begin to think for ourselves and in the process it frees us from indoctrination.

Do not be deceived by the cover of this book, whose cartoon may suggest that this is light reading or comic level stuff. It is not. This book is a professionally-prepared, well-documented catalog of the "platform of lies" that the incumbent (2000-2004) US Administration has pressed upon the public in the course of executing six wars (two public) and two occupations, both of which are going *very* badly, at great expense.

I have to give very high marks to the authors and their employer, the Center for Media & Democracy, for this book represents a "must read" for every voter.

Among the highlights (please note that all references to the US government actually refer to the political administration, which is abusing the good faith and loyalty of the millions of loyal Armed Services members as well as the civil service):

1) Documentation of US government manipulation of images coming out of Iraq

2) Documentation of how US government emphasis on manipulating the truth for the US public has actually left it unable to listen and hear and understand the truth as spoken by the Iraqi and Afghan people.

3) Documentation of the clear and present need to restore the US Information Agency (USIA) as an independent organization with a considerably expanded budget--in the age of information America is losing the mindwar, the culture war, because it is overspending on a heavy metal military and underspending on information power--what Joe Nye calls "soft power."

4) Documentation of what the author's call America's "astonishing historical amnesia," assuming they can go into the Middle East without reference to the history of British and US imperialism, including the deposition of the legitimate rulers of Iran and the continuing acceptance of Israeli disrespect for UN resolutions.

5) Documentation of why Charlotte Beers failed America, in two parts:

a) She did not know how to, was incapable of listening to, Arab voices. According to the New York Times, cited by the book, those who spoke to her "came away shaking their heads, saying American officials do not appreciate [their circumstances and views].

b) The product she was selling, the US "brand", is simply too defective, too unilateralist, too arrogant, too brutal, too harmful to multi-cultural and multi-national interests, to survive in the marketplace of the real world. This is "unsafe at any speed" writ very large, very global, very angry.

6) Documentation of the blatant (and expensive) manner in which the US government manipulated the message to the US public (if CIA had done this they would have been in violation of the law--when Hill & Knowlton does it is called "public relations" even though everything is a complete fabrication and a betrayal of the public trust). The authors excel at one point in contrasting how Washington listens to a handful of talking heads on the Middle East, while ignoring "the 1,400 full time faculty members who specialize in Middle East studies at American Universities."

7) Documentation of US government plans, under the abusive grip on power of the neo-conservatives, to carry out future "over-whelming, non-surgical, nonproportional military force" actions against the governments of Iran, Libya, Syria, and Sudan, as recommended by Richard Perle and his colleagues.

8) Documentation, over the course of the book, of both specific lies told to the US public and the world by the US government, and of the vast underlying insinuations, not quite the truth, misleading, and generally deceptive statements of all the senior political appointees, and especially Dick Cheney. The authors essentially compare George Bush and his team to Orwellian vision of governments controlling the people through doublespeak, and they label this US government as being intellectual dishonest, through and through.

9) Documentation (continuing from 8) of how this government's manipulation of the truth can be compared with Hitler's. They quote Goering to make this point: "but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in every country." Sound familiar? Remember Bush (and Clinton) saying that dissent is treason? People, we have a problem here.

There are many other important points documented in this non-fiction work--it is NOT humorous nor should the cover suggest it is told in comic fashion--but I will end with the ultimate point of it all: the author's document, on the pages leading up to page 195, that the US public is hearing and seeing and reading perhaps one tenth (1/10th) of the truth as it is available to European, Asian, Middle Eastern, and other audiences where the media is not under political and corporate control to the extent that exists in the USA. At the end of this book, I was reaffirmed in my view that real patriotism, real national unity, comes from tough love and the full truth, nothing but the truth. Against that criteria, and as documented by the authors of this book, George Bush Junior, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove, and all of their politically-appointed minions are liars who have betrayed the public trust and deserve to be impeached before or after they are thrown out of office in 2004. This is a non-fiction work of vital importance to the future of the Republic.

Other Relevant Books (See also my list on impeachment):

Vice: Dick Cheney and the Hijacking of the American Presidency

Running on Empty: How the Democratic and Republican Parties Are Bankrupting Our Future and What Americans Can Do About It

The Global Class War: How America's Bipartisan Elite Lost Our Future - and What It Will Take to Win It Back

The Global Class War: How America's Bipartisan Elite Lost Our Future - and What It Will Take to Win It Back

American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America

The Fifty-Year Wound: How America's Cold War Victory Has Shaped Our World

The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic (The American Empire Project)

Crossing the Rubicon: The Decline of the American Empire at the End of the Age of Oil

9/11 Synthetic Terror: Made in USA, Fourth Edition

The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead

In French academic Jacques Ellul's classic tome on the nature and uses of propaganda, Ellul warns against the arrogant and misguided assumption in most social democracies to discount the use of such unobtrusive means of political persuasion in their societies. According to Ellul, all of the Western democracies are every bit as vulnerable to propaganda's sinister anti-democratic effects as any other sort of `less sophisticated' (read "totalitarian" here) culture. As Ellul persuasively argues, no such invulnerability pertains. Indeed, in a modern society characterized by a powerful, affluent, and resourceful central government, one that is highly influenced by the predominant voices of industry and the economically powerful, the means of such `friendly persuasion' are both more prevalent and more dangerous than anywhere else. In this book, "Weapons Of Mass Deception", we have a literal case study of how the authors, Sheldon Rampton and John C. Stauber, have observed the current Bush administration blatantly attempt to subvert the democratic process by foisting such a propaganda campaign in support of a war of aggression against the Iraqis.

Indeed, shortly after the events of September 11, 2001, members of the current administration hired advertising executives to direct a media campaign to convince the populace of the need to conduct a preemptive attack of Iraq in pursuit of eventual security against perceived potential terrorist threats. President Bush's National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice was quoted as pointedly requesting position papers from her White House staffers as to how the administration could immediately begin using the events of 911 to further the administration's domestic and foreign policy goals. Other public relation advisors were brought in to help construct the Bush administration's on-point approach toward justifying and selling the idea of the preemptive strike to a public both disoriented and frightened by the terrorist attack on 911. A variety of different attempts to forward this action were taken and `floated' in various ploys to judge what specific combinations of reasons and justifications would best `play' to sell the war to the aggravated and anxious populace.

Thus we had an initial attempt by the organs of government to use the realtively straightforward idea of simple `regime change' as a justification for moving against Iraq, which clearly failed to elicit the desired positive effect on public opinion. Next on the sheet of potential arguments that the Bush administration was auditioning was a rather tortured attempt to use the United Nations as a forum to drag out old unresolved charges against Iraq involving international inspections, an issue which had both they and the Clinton administration hasd allowed to lay fallow for the previous four years. When this argument also failed as the rest of the civilized world reacted in horror to the procoative notion of immedaitely attacking Iraq, the Bush administration began to thread together a more independent and more substantive (though circumstantial) set of `smoking gun' notions linking Iraq to terrorist groups like Osama Bin Laden's Al Quaida on the one hand, and suggesting renewed attempts to gain a significant new capability to develop and deploy weapons of mass destruction (WMD) on the part of Saddam Hussein's government, on the other. Evidently the Bush White House staffers and the analysts with both the Defense Department and intelligence agencies didn't allow themselves to be unduly hamstrung by the available evidence. Instead, they exaggerated, misinterpreted, and even prevaricated about both the nature of and the validity of such "evidence" in constructing their arguments suporting intervention to the public.

This is obviously a book that will be seen as exteremly controversial and politically provocative, one that the various pundits on either side of the political aisle will rush to either endorse or assail in order to gain immediate advantage, and to attempt to put the best `spin' on long before the public has a chance to evaluate it on their own. In this way, even the argument about the way this administration has used a cynical, subversive and anti-democratic propagandist approach to explain and justify the war against Iraq may become yet another weapon in the ongoing media effort to persuade and describe the public perceptions of and interpretation of, events the powers that be want to manipulate for public consumption. This is a wonderful book, and one that is sure to soon be the talk of the pundits. Move over, Ann Coulter, your fifteen minutes in the spotlight's glare is over. Enjoy!

This book makes me think, "Why bother." WMD was written by two experts on the use of propaganda. They do a thorough job of exposing the lies and manipulation used by the Bush administration to "sell" the war against Iraq. The authors chronicle every thing from the administration's intent to conduct a regime change when Bush first took office to the administration's ignoring critical evidence that tended to show that Iraq was not a threat to the US. The authors are careful in this book not to take sides or claim that the US should not have gone to war. All they do is point out the evidence that was in existence and how it was used (including the fabrication of evidence). This book presents a balanced look at the pre-war media campaign; however, if you were a staunch supporter of the war, then you'll probably think this book is just a bunch of liberal crap.

Politicians have always used propaganda during times of war to help build support for military action. From Lincoln, to Hitler, to Roosevelt, there has always been an element of propaganda built into the complex war machine. With the war against Iraq, propaganda has been especially critical to the Bush administration. The use of propaganda in the war against Iraq is the primary focus of this book, "Weapons of Mass Deception", written by authors Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber.

This book centers on several of the basic elements of propaganda: selling the idea to the people, using deceptive statistics, relying on fear to encourage support for war, etc. In each of these areas, the two authors explain how these methods are used, in general, and then how the Bush administration used them to build support for the war against Iraq.

One of the primary tasks of the propaganda effort in this war was the act of convincing the people that Iraq had "weapons of mass destruction" and could attack the U.S. at any time (hence, the title of the book). Now, experts have come forward to claim that the weapons charges were false, adding more validity to the author's claim that this was the main deception of the war. Many critics of the war had doubts about the weapons claim and now this book presents its ideas on how and why the false charges were made. No direct finger pointing takes place, but the authors feel that several military and/or political leaders in the present administration are responsible.

It's interesting how politicans use the various deceptions described in this book. Some of the methods are more subtle, like the use of public relations firms to present the most patriotic take possible on everyday issues and events. Others are more direct, like the weapons claim itself. The authors present many of these war deceptions in the book, showing how the Bush administration misled the people into backing the war. The "weapons of mass destruction" claim was, of course, the biggest deception of all. Many nations have stockpiles of dangerous weapons but the U.S government has never suggested attacking them. But in this case, Bush officials had to convince the people that Iraq was a "dangerous enemy" that "had to be stopped immediately" if security would ever have a chance to become reality. The truth is, Iraq had no chance at all against the U.S. military and senior Bush officials knew this well. But the element of fear was useful to convince the public to support the war, so the claim was made nonetheless.

This book doesn't provide extensive coverage on the war and the blantant use of propaganda. It's only about 250 pages in length, and once you account for the notes and index, there are only about 210 pages to read. The authors meant for the book to be a reference tool for discovering the various acts of deception without going too deep in its analysis.

As a whole, this book makes for a pretty good read. Pro- war individuals will probably not like it, and many will stick by the president's "weapons" claim no matter what happens. But whether you are pro- war or anti- war, "Weapons of Mass Deception" is still a book worth reading. It uncovers some of the different uses of deception that the Bush administration used and it helps to educate the reader on how governments use propaganda to sway the masses of people during wartime.

Should the United States promote dialog and democracy around the world? Or should it support dictators and repressive regimes -- then use public relations techniques to convince Americans and the world that we support dialog and democracy?

PR Watch staffmembers, Rampton and Stauber demonstrate, in this well-reasoned and well-documented analysis, that the United States has, unfortunately, often chosen the second path.

Was Saddam Hussein's Iraq an imminent threat to the United States and other countries? Or was the perception of a threat just another successful public relations campaign by an unprincipled president and his skillful PR squad?

Rampton and Stauber describe how the Bush Administration sold to the American public the idea that Iraq was an imminent threat -- beginning with the "product launch" in September 2002. Writing in a very calm, understated tone, they meticulously document how the Bush Administration used PR techniques to sell "Operation Iraqi Freedom" to the public and how the US news media uncritically repeated these messages.

Now, months later, the reality is clear. No weapons of mass destruction have been found in Iraq. Saddam Hussein's Iraqi regime, like many other Middle East governments, was undeniably repressive, but clearly it was not a threat to the United States or any other country. Every item in the "thick intelligence file" used to justify the invasion of Iraq turns out not to be true. We were duped.

Rampton and Stauber argue that what we need is more truth and less public relations spin. Their book goes a long way toward showing us how to spot doublespeak and PR manipulation.

Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber's "Weapons of Mass Destruction" is a timely book that provides valuable context and analysis about the recent war with Iraq. The authors are seasoned media critics who are skilled at deconstructing propaganda and unearthing the motives that drive U.S. policy in the Middle East. Like in the movie 'Wizard of Oz', we realize that almost everything we have been told by the political leaders who have been hiding behind the proverbial curtain of PR spin has been patently untrue.

Rampton and Stauber begin the book by discussing the role U.S. propaganda has played in the Middle East from the post-WW II era to today. The authors contend that America's self-professed image of promoting democracy has clashed severely with the reality of its support for petty dictators and monarchs who, in return for U.S. support, ensured a steady supply of oil. The authors insist that this is the reason why the post-9/11 "branding" campaign to favorably influence Arabic opinion of America failed miserably.

On the other hand, selling the Iraq war to the American public has been much more successful. The authors discuss the role that PR professionals, the CIA and conservative groups played in the anti-Saddam media blitz that was heaped upon the U.S. citizenry. Perhaps not surprisingly, we learn that many of these players could profit handsomely when Iraq's oil reserves become privatized.

Rampton and Stauber examine the increasingly close relationship between the U.S. military and the media. The authors debunk the infamous 'incubator babies' story from the Gulf War era but show how such misinformation can be used to successfully influence public opinion. Likewise, claims that a Saddam-Al Qaeda connection may exist and that Saddam may possess weapons of mass destruction were known to be false, but the repetition of these lies by authority figures implied truth and persuaded many people of their validity.

In possibly the most important section of the book, Rampton and Stauber remind us that most of the terrorists involved in the 9/11 attacks were Saudi Arabian. The authors contend that deep financial ties between the Bush administration and Saudi Arabia has compromised U.S. response to the terror crisis. We learn that the Kingdom funds anti-American Wahhabism in order to channel street-level resentment of elitist privlege away from the Saudi monarchy and towards the U.S. government. This duplicity is deeply disturbing and is a sad testament to how badly American foreign policy has been compromised as a result of its selling out to big oil.

The authors go on to discuss the use of doublespeak, fear and the corporate ownership of media in shaping public discourse. Interestingly, we discover that people who watch TV the most actually know less about important topics than others. No doubt this phenomenon has something to do with the deployment of Pentagon "combat camera" crews and "embedded" TV reporters who overwhelmingly presented a pro-U.S. bias with little critical context or analysis. On the other hand, images played to foreign audiences more often depicted the brutal realities of war: the dead and injured Iraqi people, their devastated homeland, and the contradictions of U.S. policy.

In the end, "Weapons of Mass Deception" warns us about the dangers posed to democracy when leaders and citizens believe their own propaganda. I strongly encourage everyone to read this outstanding book.

Weapons of Mass Deception is just what the public needs. Written professionally and without bull, this book focuses on how we were deceived about the war in Iraq. In this to-the-point book, we learn about how the media likes war, how there was NO link between Osama and Saddam, and how this Administration is ruining public relations between the United States and Middle East. This book is truly a read for all who want to know the truth.

Warning,
...

I've just finished reading this well-written and thought-provoking book that succinctly and meticulously lays out the case that the months (and years) leading up to the Gulf War were treated in the same way that advertisers use the Super Bowl to advance new products. The product was war with Iraq. The buyers were the American people. The Bush administration used PR professionals (including the Defense Department's spokesperson Torie Clarke) often in contradiction with the intelligence between offered by the CIA, the State Department and the FBI. The idea was the same kind of "branding" that gave us Coke and Nike. Say it often enough and people will believe that "It's the real thing."

It still boggles my mind that there exists a majority of Americans who believe that Saddam Hussein was behind the attacks on the World Trade Center. It saddens me that the population of this country is so easily influenced by market forces and not by hard facts. Research shows that the more informed the populace is, the less they support the actions of the Bush Administration in Iraq. What does that tell you? What is tells me is that the Weapons of Mass Deception used by the Bush administration successfully manipulated a patriotic audience into a war whose only benefit is the profit being made by Halliburton and the Carlyle Group, organizations that have lined the pockets of the highest officials in this nation including the Bush family and Dick Cheney (who still receives regular checks from Halliburton). And the flag-wavers think we're liberating a country. It's very sad because the winners in this war are the terrorist organizations who are recruiting at record numbers. Thank you to the authors for such a cogent study of a terrifying and troubling situation.

Americans were misled repeatedly by the Bush administration. We were propagandized into a state of pro-war hysteria. If we didn't blindly support the president, we weren't supporting the troops.

Tell that to the Americans who died so this desperate chickenhawk president can win a second term. Phony flight suit militarism from a man who ducked even his National Guard service after getting a bye from the draft through string-pulling. Other Americans died in the service of their country while this brat was doing his military duty without ever showing up. He was too busy working on political campaigns.

After months of linking Iraq to Al Queda and the WTC attack, they said they'd never said anything like that. Just as Bush said those sailors put up the "Mission Accomplished" sign -- even though both the Navy and the White House say the White House provided the sign.

Don't get me wrong. The American military has done a good job, especially given the inept political leadership of this administration.

We had a well-definied mission in Afghanistan. Track down the people responsible for bombing the WTC. Getting Osama. But then the Chickenhawk-in-Chief gets sidetracked talking about folks who threatened to kill his daddy.

So far, as a result, we've had hundreds of Americans die and the Middle East is in more turmoil than ever. The walk-in-the-park liberation has turned into a mess. We can't get out, but we certainly need someone who can keep his or her eye on the target.

Osama first including the people who DIRECTLY supported him. Then we need to sit down and think about American security in the new age. It shouldn't be so different. Our freedoms are more important that the need for dysfunctional presidents to display their delayed onset manhood.

Bush's father was a decent man who made some mistakes and took some positive steps. His son is a posturing fratboy, surrounded by sycophants who tell him what he wants to hear ... and who lie about more than just weapons of mass destruction.