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It really is not possible to correctly characterize something as propaganda unless you have actually experienced it. If it is a book/article, you must read it and then compare it to the available facts. You must actually make some effort to determine if the available facts match those presented in the book/article and if the book/article has made an effort to present something reasonably even-handed or, at the very least, is supported by some sort of logic.
It is quite laughable to call a movie propaganda when one has not seen it. If the movie is reviewed, one cannot correctly call the review propaganda unless one verifies that it correctly presents the movie. To do that, you have to view the movie.
Some propaganda is a lie. Some lies are just lies. Not all propaganda presents lies. Propaganda can simply be an organized presentation of ideas slanted to the purpose of causing a certain reaction in the reader/viewer/listener. Often a knee-jerk or emotional reaction is desired.
Just as there is a little larceny in all of us, there is a little propaganda in many forms of communication. It is too tempting for writers, speakers, directors, and politicians, and so on not to use it. This is not all bad. Sometimes it is quite exciting and powerful. Sometimes it urges us to make changes that we actually need to make.
It is only when we leave our brains on the threshold and enter the house of understanding with only our emotions as guide that we tend to fall victim to propaganda.
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It is very dangerous to have torture codified into our laws. People must torture at their own peril and face legal consequences for their missteps if they get caught or if the court of public opinion is not properly grateful for the information they extract. The reason we must keep it that way is not so that the terrorist who has planted a yet-to-be-detonated bomb goes unquestioned, but rather so that we don't have a bunch of idiots running amok placing bags over the heads of naked people and terrifying them with dog attacks; so that we don't have the Vice President of the United States of America singing the praises of waterboarding on a Sunday morning talk show; so that there is some reasonable due process for all prisoners; however we may wish to characterized their detention.
It would be nice if internationally we could salvage some vestige of dignity and some shred of decency, wouldn't it? Otherwise, if we don't, when we most need it who will have our back?
