The blurry lines between popular media and party propaganda: China's convergence culture through a linguistic lens.

There is a growing body of scholarly evidence that media convergence blurs the boundary between media production and media consumption and obscures the lines between institutions and individuals. Media convergence in the context of China has garnered attention in communication studies and in cultural studies. However, there is a scarcity of research on convergence culture from a linguistic perspective. Recent research has generated initial evidence that state media appropriates a pop-cultural social address for clickbait and information management in China's digital media space. However, the patterns and perceptual reality of linguistic convergence remain unexplored. This study investigates popular and party uses of xiaojiejie 'little older sister', a familiar expression of fictive kinship reborn as a viral personal reference and social address in China's convergence culture. Analysis of the Target Group Index in the Baidu search engine suggests xiaojiejie is gaining ground over its predecessor among young Chinese. Trends analysis of its usage in WeChat public accounts showed that the term has spread from popular media to state media, which employs the viral address to drive clickbait and disguise propaganda. An online survey of young Chinese WeChat users (N=330) on their perception of xiaojiejie headlines from WeChat public accounts showed that respondents could not tell state media uses from popular uses, providing perceptual evidence of the blurry boundaries between popular and state media uses of the viral address. The findings demonstrate the reality of linguistic convergence driven by participatory performance and its perceptual consequences in China's convergence culture.

Pre-war experimental evidence that Putin's propaganda elicited strong support for military invasion among Russians.

In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. The Putin regime used extensive and aggressive propaganda to win public support for the war. But can this propaganda really convince ordinary people? Using the unique timing of a survey experiment fielded a year before the invasion, we provide the first experimental evidence of the effectiveness of this propaganda among Russian citizens. Vignette treatments containing information on threats similar to stories running in Russian media around the time of the invasion in combination with statements from President Putin show that propaganda was highly effective. Even mild treatments were enough to increase support for military aggression against neighboring countries among Russians from around 8 to 48% and up to 59% among Putin's supporters. Thus, the Russian president had good reason to believe that he could control popular opinion when he decided to launch a war against Ukraine.

Exploring online oral health misinformation: a content analysis.

Considering the unfavorable implications of health falsehoods and the lack of dental research into information disorder, this study aimed to identify and characterize online oral health misinformation. A total of 410 websites published in English were retrieved using Google Advanced Search and screened by two independent investigators to compile falsehoods through thematic content analysis. Afterward, 318 pieces of misinformation were consensually divided into four groups concerning their informational interest (G1), financial, psychological, and social interests produced/disseminated by non-dental professionals (G2) or by dental professionals (G3), and political interests (G4). Social media (Facebook and Instagram) and fact-checking tool (Snopes) were also screened to determine the spread of falsehoods by identifying corresponding posts and warnings. As a result, misinformation was mainly associated with gum diseases (12.0%), root canal treatment (11.6%), toothache (10.4%), fluoride (10.4%), and dental caries (9.8%), with a special highlight on recommendations for the usage of natural products, toxicity concerns, and anti-fluoridation propaganda. Additionally, most misinformation was allocated in G3 (41.9%), which presented a statistically higher frequency of financial interests than G4. Finally, falsehoods were considerably identified on Facebook (62.9%) and Instagram (49.4%), especially G3 and G4. Nevertheless, Snopes has debunked only 5.9% of these content items. Therefore, misinformation was predominantly produced or disseminated by dental professionals mainly motivated by financial interests and usually linked to alternative/natural treatments. Although these items were shared on social media, fact-checking agencies seemed to have limited knowledge about their dissemination.

Global political leaders during the COVID-19 vaccination: Between propaganda and fact-checking.

The advent of COVID-19 vaccination meant a moment of hope after months of crisis communication. However, the context of disinformation on social media threatened the success of this public health campaign. This study examines how heads of government and fact-checking organizations in four countries managed communications on Twitter about the vaccination. Specifically, we conduct a content analysis of their discourses through the observation of propaganda mechanisms. The research draws on a corpus of words related to the pandemic and vaccines in France, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States (n = 2,800). The data were captured for a five-month period (January-May 2021), during which COVID-19 vaccines became available for elderly people. The results show a trend of clearly fallacious communication among the political leaders, based on the tools of emphasis and appeal to emotion. We argue that the political messages about the vaccination mainly used propaganda strategies. These tweets also set, to a certain extent, the agendas of the most relevant fact-checking initiatives in each country.

Psychology of the Lvov-Warsaw School and the shape of postcommunist Polish psychology (unfinished dialog with Brentanian tradition).

This article presents the development of Polish psychology from the perspective of the most important intellectual formation in Poland-the Lvov-Warsaw School of Kazimierz Twardowski. The representatives of the school played an extraordinary role in the history of Polish psychology in the first half of the 20th century. Unfortunately, this influence was halted by the outbreak of the war in 1939 and by communist oppression and propaganda after the war. After 1989, Polish psychology underwent a deep transformation in the spirit of Western psychology but with no continuation of the most significant achievements of Twardowski's School. Although this process has integrated Polish psychologists into the mainstream of psychology in the world, it has not led to the integration of one of the most original European psychological traditions into world psychology.

Advertising and Psychology: Strategies to Reduce Violence Against Women / Publicidade e Psicologia: Estratégias de Redução da Violência Contra a Mulher / Publicidad y Psicología: Estrategias de Reducción de la Violencia Contra la Mujer

Abstract The COVID-19 exacerbated violence against women. This study evaluated the possible efficacy of using advertising pieces containing the hypocrisy paradigm, the contrast principle, and moral disengagement mechanisms to prevent and reduce violence against women. We conducted two studies which included exclusively men as participants. Study 1 (n=400; M age =21.69; Me=20.00; SD=5.79) used traditional pieces on violence against women, manipulating only their moral disengagement phrases. Results suggest that the phrase combined with traditional images is either ineffective or has a rebound effect. Study 2 (n=303; M age =21.38; Me=20.00; SD=4.94) manipulated the image in Study 1, showing more effective results regarding hostility. However, physical aggression showed no significant differences. Finally, some pieces generated a rebound effect, increasing participants' self-perception of aggression. The use of advertising can act as an ally or an enemy of public policies if their effectiveness lacks proper testing.

Resumo A violência contra mulheres é um problema pandêmico agravado pela COVID-19. Esta pesquisa objetivou verificar a eficácia de peças publicitárias em reduzir a violência contra mulheres por meio do paradigma de hipocrisia, o princípio de contraste e os mecanismos de desengajamento moral. Realizaram-se dois estudos com amostras masculinas. O Estudo 1 (n=400; M idade =21,69; Me=20,00; DP=5,79) utilizou peças tradicionais, manipulando apenas as frases de desengajamento moral. O resultado sugere que a frase combinada com imagens tradicionais são ineficazes ou geram efeito rebote. O Estudo 2 (n=303; M idade =21,38; Me=20,00; DP=4,94) manipulou a imagem e os resultados indicam maior efetividade das peças em relação à hostilidade. Entretanto, a agressão física não demonstrou diferenças significativas. Finalmente, algumas peças geraram efeito rebote, levando ao incremento da autopercepção de agressividade dos participantes. O uso da publicidade pode prejudicar políticas públicas de combate a violência contra mulheres quando sua eficácia não é devidamente testada.

Resumen La violencia contra la mujer es un problema pandémico agravado por el COVID-19. Esta investigación verificó el grado de eficacia de anuncios publicitarios para reducir la violencia contra la mujer utilizando el paradigma de la hipocresía, el principio de contraste y los mecanismos de desconexión moral. Se diseñaron dos estudios con muestras masculinas. El Estudio 1 (n=400; M edad =21,69; Me=20,00; DT=5,79) utilizó anuncios tradicionales, manipulando únicamente las frases de desconexión moral. El resultado sugiere que la frase combinada con imágenes tradicionales es ineficaz o tiene efecto rebote. El Estudio 2 (n=303; M edad =21,38, Me=20,00; DT=4,94) manipuló la imagen, y los resultados indican mayor eficacia respecto a la hostilidad. Pero la agresión física no mostró diferencias significativas. Finalmente, algunos anuncios generaron efecto rebote, incrementando la autopercepción de la agresividad. Así, el uso de la publicidad puede actuar como enemiga de las políticas públicas contra la violencia a la mujer cuando no se comprueba adecuadamente su eficacia.

Dehumanization and mass violence: A study of mental state language in Nazi propaganda (1927-1945).

Dehumanization is frequently cited as a precursor to mass violence, but quantitative support for this notion is scarce. The present work provides such support by examining the dehumanization of Jews in Nazi propaganda. Our linguistic analysis suggests that Jews were progressively denied the capacity for fundamentally human mental experiences leading up to the Holocaust. Given that the recognition of another's mental experience promotes moral concern, these results are consistent with the theory that dehumanization facilitates violence by disengaging moral concern. However, after the onset of the Holocaust, our results suggest that Jews were attributed a greater capacity for agentic mental states. We speculate this may reflect a process of demonization in which Nazi propagandists portrayed the Jews as highly capable of planning and intentionality while nonetheless possessing a subhuman moral character. These suggestive results paint a nuanced portrait of the temporal dynamics of dehumanization during the Holocaust and provide impetus for further empirical scrutiny of dehumanization in ecologically valid contexts.

"My Death Was in a Kiss": Theatrical Propaganda Against Sexually Transmitted Infections in the Early Soviet Union and the United States in the 1920s-1930s.

We analyze key historical anti-sexually transmitted infection (STI) theatrical performances in the Soviet Union and the United States that were staged to disseminate knowledge and awareness of STIs among the population. The phenomenon of theatrical hygiene propaganda emerged in the USSR after the October Uprising of 1917. The so-called sanitary plays, mock trials, revues, and Living Newspapers addressed important public health issues, one of which was STIs. The Soviet experience provided inspiration for the Federal Theater Project in the United States, which produced socially relevant performances during the Great Depression. The Living Newspaper Spirochete, staged in Chicago, Illinois, in 1938 at the beginning of the "war against syphilis," became one of the most often staged Living Newspapers in the United States. We compare discourses of the theatrical propaganda against STIs in the Soviet Union and the United States. We aim to explain the driving forces and motives behind the anti-STI movement in both countries and describe structural and performative differences in the anti-STI theatrical productions. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(9):1318-1325. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.306933).

Afterword: Science popularization, dictatorships, and democracies.

This Afterword to the special section on Science Popularization in Francoist Spain draws general conclusions from its case studies. Most overarchingly, the different contributions show that popularization existed under this dictatorial regime, and hence does not require a Habermasian liberal-democratic public sphere. Four more specific lessons are also drawn, each shedding new light on either science popularization or dictatorial regimes. (1) Popularization has not only been a way to promote science, it has also been used to prop up dictatorial regimes by associating them with things scientific. (2) Totalitarian regimes are much less monolithic than they appear to be at the surface; they often harbor internal weaknesses and conflicts. (3) The study of science popularization in dictatorships can help open our eyes for comparable forms of propaganda in democracies. (4) Totalitarianism is best understood not as a universal phenomenon, but in its specific historical situatedness. Studying science popularization under Franco brings out the specific traits of this regime: the legacy of the Civil War, Spanish regionalism, and the international dependencies of the Francoist state.

From Dresden to the world: images of the German Hygiene Museum's relations with Latin America, 1911-1933.

As of the nineteenth century, the number of world fairs and hygiene exhibitions grew significantly. This phenomenon was linked to the experience of modernity and the emergence of bacteriology, when different cities were sanitized with the aim of combating urban diseases and epidemics. For the purpose of sanitary education and hygiene propaganda, many objects and pictures were displayed in hygiene exhibitions and museums, such as the International Hygiene Exhibition of 1911 and the German Hygiene Museum, both in Dresden. The goal of this article is to analyze a chapter of the international history of health through images that portray the connections between the German Hygiene Museum and Latin American countries between 1911 and 1933.

The impact of reusable tableware packaging combined with environmental propaganda on consumer behaviour in online retail.

With the development of the takeaway industry, the demand for disposable cutlery is increasing, posing a heavy burden on the environment. Helping reusable tableware increase market share is important because it helps preserve the natural environment while making commercial gains. Given the additional cost to consumers of using reusable tableware in many settings, this article examines the impact of incorporating environmental propaganda into packaging design on consumer behaviour. The results show that the new packaging with high environmental propaganda satisfaction improves consumers' brand loyalty, purchase intention and continuance intention. The packaging of low environmental propaganda satisfaction may have negative effects and should be used with caution.

A medicalização do sofrimento psíquico na cultura do hiperconsumo / Medicalization of psychic suffering in a culture of hyperconsumption

Na atual fase em que se encontra a sociedade de consumo, estão presentes de forma bastante acentuada os valores do hedonismo, da busca incessante pela felicidade através da aquisição de bens materiais, da negação do sofrimento, dos lazeres, da leveza e do hiperindividualismo. O processo crescente de destradicionalização da sociedade tornou o sujeito ao mesmo tempo livre e instável. Com o enfraquecimento da capacidade ordenadora de instituições como igreja e escola, o sujeito tende a buscar no consumo de bens e serviços uma fonte de segurança, além do uso de medicamentos que aliviam o sofrimento psíquico gerado por esse desamparo. Considerando que a medicalização do sofrimento psíquico atinge largas escalas nessa fase da sociedade contemporânea, o presente trabalho propõe-se a investigar os fatores da cultura do hiperconsumo que funcionam como dispositivos que favorecem o processo da medicalização generalizada. Partiu-se de uma pesquisa bibliográfica na qual foram observados alguns atores que difundem o discurso medicalizante, como a publicidade, a psiquiatria hegemônica e a indústria farmacêutica. As informações apresentadas e organizadas na pesquisa resultam na constatação de que a medicalização é produto tanto de interesses da indústria farmacêutica como da demanda do hiperconsumidor por felicidade, bem-estar e ausência de sofrimento.(AU)

In the current phase in which the consumer society is present, the values of hedonism, the incessant search for happiness through the acquisition of material goods, the denial of suffering, leisure, lightness and hyperindividualism are quite marked. The growing process of detraditionalization of society has made the subject at the same time free and unstable. With the weakening of the ordering capacity of institutions such as church and school, the subject tends to seek in the consumption of goods and services a source of security, in addition to the use of medications that relieve the psychic suffering generated by this helplessness. Considering that the medicalization of psychic suffering reaches large scales in this phase of contemporary society, the present work proposes to investigate the factors of the culture of hyperconsumption that function as devices that favor the process of generalized medicalization. It was based on a bibliographical research in which some actors were observed that spread the medicalizing discourse, such as advertising, hegemonic psychiatry and the pharmaceutical industry. The information presented and organized in the research results in the finding that medicalization is the product of both the interests of the pharmaceutical industry and the demand of the hyperconsumer for happiness, well-being and absence of suffering.(AU)

En la fase actual en la que está presente la sociedad de consumo, los valores del hedonismo, la búsqueda incesante de la felicidad a través de la adquisición de bienes materiales, la negación del sufrimiento, el ocio, la ligereza y el hiperindividualismo son bastante marcados. El creciente proceso de destradicionalización de la sociedad ha hecho que el sujeto sea al mismo tiempo libre e inestable. Con el debilitamiento de la capacidad de ordenamiento de instituciones como la iglesia y la escuela, el sujeto tiende a buscar en el consumo de bienes y servicios una fuente de seguridad, además del uso de medicamentos que alivian el sufrimiento psíquico generado por esta indefensión. Considerando que la medicalización del sufrimiento psíquico alcanza grandes escalas en esta fase de la sociedad contemporánea, el presente trabajo propone investigar los factores de la cultura del hiperconsumo que funcionan como dispositivos que favorecen el proceso de medicalización generalizada. Se basó en una investigación bibliográfica en la que se observaron algunos actores que difundieron el discurso medicalizador, como la publicidad, la psiquiatría hegemónica y la industria farmacéutica. La información presentada y organizada en la investigación resulta en el hallazgo de que la medicalización es el producto tanto de los intereses de la industria farmacéutica como de la demanda del hiperconsumidor de felicidad, bienestar y ausencia de sufrimiento.(AU)

Difusão e propaganda sobre antienvelhecimento na mídia brasileira: um estudo de representações sociais / Diffusion and propaganda about anti-aging in brazilian media: a study of social representations / Difusión y propaganda sobre el antienvejecimiento en los medios de comunicación brasileños: un estudio de las representaciones sociales

Esta pesquisa buscou mapear conteúdos relativos ao antienvelhecimento em revistas de grande circulação e no noticiário brasileiro, entre 1º de janeiro de 2016 e 31 de dezembro de 2019. Foram investigadas as revistas Claudia, Boa Forma, VIP e Carbono Uomo. Houve ainda coleta no portal de notícias G1, da Rede Globo de Televisão, voltado ao público geral. Foram criados dois corpora distintos formados pelos conteúdos do G1 e das revistas que, então, foram submetidos à Classificação Hierárquica Descendente pelo software IRaMuTeQ, dando origem a dois subcorpora e quatro classes para cada um. Os resultados apontam uma forte tendência mercadológica nas revistas, que buscam conduzir os leitores ao consumo de produtos e à realização de procedimentos estéticos. Por outro lado, as notícias jornalísticas apregoam um modelo de vida mais saudável como principal prática antienvelhecimento, ao mesmo tempo que alertam sobre os riscos envolvidos nos procedimentos e produtos estéticos irregulares. Em geral, o conteúdo das revistas dissipa representações sociais que idealizam um padrão de beleza do corpo jovial, associando a velhice à fealdade, enquanto o do portal de notícias G1 voltam-se à saúde e longevidade.(AU)

This survey aimed to map anti-aging content, in magazines with wide circulation and also in Brazilian news, between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2019. Claudia, Boa Forma, VIP and Carbono Uomo magazines were studied. News were also collected from the G1 news portal, from Globo television network, aimed at the general audience. Two distinct corpora formed by the contents of the G1 and the magazines were created, which were then submitted to the Descending Hierarchical Classification, by the IRaMuTeQ software, leading to two subcorpora and four classes for each. The results show a strong market orientation in the magazines, which aim to lead readers to purchase products and undertake aesthetic procedures. The news reports, on the other way, promote a healthier life model as the main anti-aging practice, while warning about the risks involved in irregular aesthetic procedures and products. In general, the content of the magazines spreads social representations which idealize a pattern of beauty of a young body, connecting old age with ugliness, whereas that of the G1 news portal are focused on health and longevity.(AU)

Esta iniciativa buscó mapear material de antienvejecimiento, en revistas de gran tirada y en las noticias de Brasil, entre el 1 de enero de 2016 y el 31 de diciembre de 2019. Se analizaron las revistas Claudia, Boa Forma, VIP y Carbono Uomo. También se recogieron noticias del sitio de noticias G1 y de la red de televisión Globo, ambas dirigidas al público en general. Se crearon dos corpora distintos formados por el contenido del G1 y de las revistas, que luego fueron sometidos a la Clasificación Jerárquica Descendente, por el software IRaMuTeQ, dando lugar a dos subcorpora y cuatro clases para cada uno de los corpora. Los resultados señalan una fuerte orientación del mercado de promoción en las revistas, que buscan llevar a los lectores a consumir productos y realizar procedimientos estéticos. En cambio, las noticias periodísticas difunden un modelo de vida más saludable como la principal práctica antienvejecimiento, mientras que al mismo tiempo advierten sobre los riesgos que implican los procedimientos irregulares y los productos estéticos. De forma general, el contenido de las revistas difunde representaciones sociales que idealizan un estándar de belleza del cuerpo joven, asociando la vejez con la fealdad, mientras que el del portal de noticias G1 se orienta a la salud y la longevidad.(AU)

'The King of Diseases': An Essay on the Special Attention Paid to Cancer Patients and How It Came About.

The history of cancer during the twentieth century demonstrates that various factors have contributed to the perception of cancer as the 'Emperor of All Maladies', although this has never been true from an epidemiological perspective. Depending on the geographical area, infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria or cardiovascular disease still head the list of the most common illnesses. Within the group of chronic-degenerative diseases, however, cancer has outdistanced the widespread classic infectious diseases as a result of the epidemiologic transition around 1900, at least in the more developed countries. Under the Nazi dictatorship from 1933 to 1945, the perception of cancer in Germany was particularly promoted for propaganda purposes. In the atomic era, cancer began to attract strong public interest as a worthwhile object of research in radiation therapies using large-scale facilities (electron accelerators, 'electron guns'). A further upsurge of interest in cancer was then registered in the context of the debate about the pathogenic role of environmental factors. The remarkable thing is that this increased perception of cancer has not yet been significantly associated with any overarching success in cancer treatment, but it has been associated with ideologies, hopes and advances in technology.

The "proletarian disease" on stage. Theatrical anti-tuberculosis propaganda in the early Soviet Union.

The present contribution analyses sanitary theatrical performances as a means of anti-tuberculosis propaganda in the early Soviet Union. Starting in the 1920s, sanitary theatrical performances were demonstrated in open-air theatres and clubhouses for workers and farmers. Since 1925, the newly founded Moscow Theatre for Sanitary Culture centrally managed the theatrical hygiene propaganda. It became a role model for other theatres of hygienic enlightenment and numerous sanitary amateur stages. Their anti-tuberculosis repertoire ranged from the so-called "mock trials" where a person or even Koch's bacillus must stand trial for the spreading of tuberculosis, to "living newspapers" which used entertainment elements such as music or acrobatics to provide a mass audience with the hygiene knowledge. The contribution describes in which images, figures and actions knowledge about tuberculosis was presented on stage, which genre traditions and communicative instruments were used and which changing political implications those performances were based on. To achieve this goal, the archive sources, selected texts of theatrical performances, reports and reviews in daily press have been evaluated.

Reducing the Impact of Anti-Vaccine Propaganda on Family Health.

Emeritus Professor Alan Glasper from the University of Southampton discusses strategies to enhance Covid-19 and other vaccine uptake among some families and groups in society who are adversely influenced by so called anti-vaxxers.

[The lack of confidence to vaccination as information planting].

The key requirements to vaccine are its safety and efficiency. Nowadays, when issue of vaccination is extremely acute, certain citizens began voluntarily to refuse important procedure, not becoming thoughtful that they endanger both themselves and other people. The purpose of the study is to specify the arguments and methods of circulation of anti-vaccination propaganda and to find out scientific counterarguments. Actually, there is sufficient data concerning lack of confidence to vaccination and vaccine prevention of infectious diseases. The systematic qualitative review of publications on issues of interest was carried out. It is established that lack of confidence to vaccination is maintained artificially and can be characterized as an information virus. The information throw-ins of fake-news about danger of vaccine and harm of vaccination undermine population trust to health care and vaccine prevention. The problem continues to be actual and controversial. So, every individual is independently to determine one's attitude to vaccination and to take charge of one's own health. Also, a number of facts is presented refuting convictions of anti-vaccinators.