What is it?
For a firm definition, propaganda is “dissemination of information—facts, arguments, rumors, half-truths, or lies—to influence public opinion” (Smith). Its purpose is to manipulate people's beliefs or attitudes of a certain idea to favor the propagandists. Propaganda can come in a multitude of different forms such as banners, posters, music, movies, designs, and insignia. As long as it gets the idea across, it can be used to spread the news. This information is meant to be displayed in certain ways and purposefully omits information in the propagandists favor. Those who are reactors of this are then manipulated into believing it as truth. Propaganda can be seen throughout history and in present day government systems around the world. By examining popular examples of what propaganda is in history, it can be easier to understand the extent it can influence people's thoughts and lives.
WWII: Germany 
One of the most popular forms of propaganda in history can be found within Germany during 1933. This was when Hitler and Nazi power began to overtake Germany. Hitler created Reich Ministry of public Enlightenment and Propaganda (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) where Joseph Goebbels was put in charge to ensure that the Nazi message got spread all around Germany. He used anything and everything at his disposal to manipulate the people of Germany to believe in the antisemitic government Hitler put into place. This ranged from music, to books, educational material, newspapers, and even the Olympics of 1936. Their goal was to create a sense of tolerance to the blatant discrimination towards the Jews, painting Germany being the good guys.
Propaganda wasn't only used for the antisemitic practices in Nazi Germany. The propaganda wasn't only fooling the people but also foreign governments claiming that what they were doing was fair and not as bad as it truly was. When they were against the Soviet Union, Goebbels and many other propagandist displayed an invasion from Russia would result in an apocalyptic future for Germany. This once again, painted Germany as a "good" guy defending itself from the bad. The political sway that some pictures or slogans had during this period creates a clear demonstration of the power propaganda has over people.
WWI: United States
On the other side of the Ocean, and a few year before, America also has examples of propaganda being used. During President Woodrow Wilson's campaign, he promised the United States that he would keep them out of World War I. In the end, he did not fulfill his promise, entering the United States into the war. As a way to "keep the peace," Wilson created the Committee on Public Information (CPI) to create a sense of patriotism for America. George Creel, the head of the CPI, preferred to not refer to what he was doing as propaganda since it had to close of a relation to Germany. Rather he viewed it as spreading "good news" and disclosing information about the war.
Creel wanted to influence the US to think about winning the war and sparking support for participation. There were 6000 press releases and 1500 patriotic advertisements. Creel displayed German soldiers as "apes" or beasts to demonize the enemy and continue to fuel patriotism in the US. This ultimately had backlash since people who were pacifist, socialists, or German immigrants were receiving a tremendous amount of hate from serious patriotic fanatics. Wilson and Creel privately discussed and dealt with these matters but never openly admitted their hand in causing it to happen (O'Toole). While the propaganda worked, there were things outside of their control that they couldn't handle, once again demonstrating the power over public opinion through propaganda.
Present Day
So where is propaganda in today's society? You may think that it is not as prevalent since today we don't have the extreme advertisements that you saw during these World Wars but in reality, it is the exact opposite. Propaganda is everywhere around us. Political campaigns use it all the time with slogans or promises to win elections. Social media has created a whole platform where people are capable of displaying themselves in any way they want. Propaganda as a base idea is just someone trying to influence the public opinion. Whether it is noticeable or not, propaganda is a common occurrence in everyday life, it just depends if you consider it to be real or not.
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