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Sheldon Rampton

Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq Paperback – July 28, 2003

by Sheldon Rampton (Author), John Stauber (Author)

52 ratings

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Weapons of Mass Deception reveals:

How the Iraq war was sold to the American public through professional P.R. strategies.
- "The First Casualty": Lies that were told related to the Iraq war.
  - Euphemisms and jargon related to the Iraq war, e.g. "shock and awe," "Operation Iraqi Freedom," "axis of evil," "coalition of the willing," etc.
    "War as Opportunity": How the war on terrorism and the war on Iraq have been used as marketing hooks to sell products and policies that have nothing to do with fighting terrorism.
    "Brand America": The efforts of Charlotte Beers and other U.S. propaganda campaigns designed to win hearts overseas.
    "The Mass Media as Propaganda Vehicle": How news coverage followed Washington's lead and language.
    The book includes a glossary — "Propaganda: A User's Guide" — and resources to help Americans sort through the deceptions to see the strings behind Washington's campaign to sell the Iraq war to the public.

Print length

256 pages
Language

English
Publisher

TarcherPerigee
Publication date

July 28, 2003
Dimensions

5.56 x 0.64 x 8.23 inches
ISBN-10

1585422762
ISBN-13

978-1585422760
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As government officials and observers battle over whether or not the Bush administration exaggerated intelligence reports of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction to justify war, there should be a ready audience for this new book by the authors of Believe Us, We're Experts! Professional debunkers of media manipulation, Rampton and Stauber unmask the impact of "information warriors and perception managers" (as one PR consultant described himself) on Bush's attempt to turn public opinion in favor of war on Iraq. The authors deconstruct the PR campaign to promote the U.S. in the wake of September 11: the State Department's hiring of ad exec Charlotte Beers ("the queen of Madison Avenue") to direct the campaign; how PR execs and lobbyists helped construct the government's anti-Iraq message; the administration's alleged misinformation and distortion of facts and reliance on rumor to influence public opinion. Anyone skeptical of the reasons for the war against Iraq will find their suspicions enhanced here.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"The authors brilliantly expose an interconnected web linking some of the country's largest public relations and advertising firms, the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House." —San Francisco Chronicle

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ TarcherPerigee; First Printing edition (July 28, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1585422762
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1585422760
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.56 x 0.64 x 8.23 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,573,102 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #749 in Arms Control (Books)
- #930 in Propaganda & Political Psychology
- #2,351 in Iraq War History (Books)

Customer Reviews:
52 ratings

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Unmasking the wizards of spin

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2003

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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.

28 people found this helpful

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Nom DelaNom

Every American should read this book!

Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2003

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I won't waste your time repeating what others have said before me and said so well. The facts and observations in this book paint a chilling picture of a Whitehouse that functions almost exclusively as the propaganda wing of the exclusive Carlyle Group by manufacturing public opinion, manufacturing a state of endless war (thus creating a market for the Carlyle Group's principle product: arms) and making legal and acceptable activities that would otherwise be unthinkable.
This book helps cut through the rhetoric and makes it clear that we are no longer in a situation that can be defined as Republicans vs. Democrats, or Conservative vs. Liberal values. What is made clear is that the highest offices in our country have been hijacked by criminals, idealogical extremists and terrorists. It's a shame that most Republicans will dismiss this as so much "liberal propaganda"; it's their party that's been hijacked and if they ever face the truth, I suspect they'll be mighty cheesed off.

11 people found this helpful

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Needs more scientific support but a good start

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2005

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Deception has become a popular practice in modern society, but it is not all pervasive, since if it were there would be no change and no criticism. Without a doubt there would not be the plethora of ideas that now exists if everyone was convinced that the practice of deception is a moral or practical imperative. However, it is the modus operandi of government officials and advertising executives, who believe that without it no products could be sold and no wars could be fought. Their belief in deception has its roots in their own insecurities: they simply do not believe that they can give convincing arguments or rationales behind the products they manufacture or the ideologies they believe. Government officials have another belief that puts them to some extent in the same camp as academicians and educated intellectuals: they believe that "the public is dumb" and therefore needs to be deceived. To not deceive the public is to let them lead themselves astray and pursue irrational or destructive tendencies. The belief that "the public is dumb" is not unique to any political or partisan cause, and it is accepted as "commonsense" by most individuals in government and those in its supporting infrastructure.

This book discusses the techniques and modern history of propaganda and advertising as it was applied to justify the current conflict in Iraq. It does so however from a general non-scientific viewpoint, and thus does not attempt to give a scientific understanding of why populations are sometimes taken by sloganeering, propaganda, and other forms of media hype. If the book made connections with current research in neuroscience, it would have been a lot more interesting. As it stands it should be thought of as a "first approximation" to a full understanding of the efficacy of advertising and propaganda techniques. Such an understanding would be very helpful to those who are not only curious about the effects of the media on the human brain, but also want to discover countermeasures to these effects.

Some of the virtues of the book include its description of the extent to which the horror of the 9/11 attacks was exploited by many different groups, and not just those in government. The current administration of course was the worse culprit and took full advantage of the anxiety felt by most everyone after 9/11 in order to launch a brutal, illegal, and immoral war in Iraq. The authors give many more examples of political and interest groups who squeezed every drop they could out of the 9/11 disaster. The tactics of deception used were independent of the beliefs and ideologies of the respective groups. Both Democrats and Republicans had absolutely no qualms about using the 9/11 nightmare to propagate with gusto their political memes.

When reading the book, it is amazing to see the amount of money that was spent by public relations and advertising firms hired specifically to take advantage of the fears of the "general public." The authors correctly advise against letting fear rule our lives, and this book actually assists in encouraging a strong sense of skepticism toward the media and the government. In every waking hour of our lives we must critically examine all news stories, speeches, and political and commercial advertisements so as not to be inadvertently influenced by their content. Neuroscience teaches us that the human brain is susceptible to deceptive information if conscious effort is not made to examine it carefully and deliberately, but it is also able to differentiate between what is plausible and what is implausible. A focused, skeptical public can definitely serve as countervailing power to the lies and rubbish that proceed from cynical and amoral advertising agencies and government institutions.

5 people found this helpful

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L.W. Brittian

As advertised

Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2019

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As advertised

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Brian Wallace (Co-author of It's Not Your Hair)

scapegoats and sheep

Reviewed in the United States on January 27, 2004

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an enlightening, largely objective review of the nefarious tactics of propaganda done to our minds. If our minds on drugs are like fried eggs, then our minds on lies must be scrambled well-done with an unhealthy dash of hot sauce for good measured drama.
Where is Osama? Does anyone really care anymore now that we got the boogeyman?
This kind is a terrible thing to taste.

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Top reviews from other countries

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stetch

Spannende Darstellung der US Kriegspropaganda im Irak-Krieg

Reviewed in Germany on April 7, 2020

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Sehr detaillierte Darstellung, wie vor, während und nach dem Angriff auf den Irak die globalen Massenmedien von der US Regierung getäuscht und belogen wurden. Falsche Behauptungen, "getürkte" Beweise, gestellte Filmaufnahmen, etc. Leider hat man das Prinzip der US Kriegspropaganda nach den ersten 40 Seiten des Buches begriffen und danach wiederholt sich das Buch inhaltlich, indem es fortlaufend neue Fälle nennt. Eine echte Fleißarbeit. Trotzdem als Buch sehr lesenswert.

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Andres Vargas R

Muy buena

Reviewed in Mexico on March 2, 2022

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Describe las situaciones y eventos con otra visión de los hechos, diferente a las visiones tradicionales sobre los conflictos en Medio Oriente

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Amazon Customer

Four Stars

Reviewed in Canada on July 19, 2017

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Very interesting read and very insightful.

mtanaka7

完璧なジョークで装った、完璧なイカサマ破り！

Reviewed in Japan on January 7, 2004

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まず、何といっても、最大のイカサマに対して最高のジョークが一発。とんだWMDである。表紙を見ているだけでも楽しい。けれども、中身の分析は半端ではない。「ならずもの」の「大量破壊兵器」を探しているはずが、じつは真の「ならずもの」が「大規模イカサマ兵器」をあれやこれやと苦心惨憺の始末。近年、メディア操作が注目を浴びているが、ブッシュ・ブレア・コンビの場合は、説得術やメディア操作などという代物ではなく、テロや独裁者を利用して、白を黒と無理矢理納得させているようなものである。このようなイカサマがまかり通る世界に、私たちは生きているのであろうか？

One person found this helpful

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michael_hosino

「大衆を欺く兵器」米国の最新戦争プロパガンダの恐怖

Reviewed in Japan on September 3, 2003

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「自由のための戦争」を演出するために雇われた、ＰＲ企業のエキスパート達。彼らの関心は自らのキャリアアップだけである。
FOX,CNN他ニュースネットワークは爆撃されたイラク人被害者の映像（＝死）を徹底に隠蔽し、戦争報道ならぬ「戦争ライブ」で視聴率競争に熱を上げる。大手メディア企業にとって「真実」は経営者の関心事項ではない。
湾岸戦争で戦場を駆けた軍用４ＷＤ車を、テレビで観ていたアーノルド・シュワルツネガーが街乗り用に要求。それに応えてメーカーのＡＭゼネラル社は「画期的な新製品」として軍用車両を一般化し、結果として米国中で大流行したＳＵＶ車。「愛国」の名の下に、戦争までも大量消費するという不気味な資本主義の一例だ。
つまるところ、アメリカにとって戦争とは、国!家を挙げた大事業なのだ。株主とＣＥＯの利益最大化を目指し、米国の企業人たちは積極的に、この狂気のビジネスのために労働者の税金を投資しているのである。ファーストフード店勤務よりも安い月給で地獄の戦場に赴き、運良く帰国しても劣化ウラン弾の後遺症に苦しむアメリカ兵士達の警告も聞かずに。
この本を読めば、そんなアメリカが実感できる。

4 people found this helpful

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